The Justice Department's Antitrust Division has cleared Paramount Skydance's proposed $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, according to two people familiar with the matter, removing a major federal hurdle for the blockbuster media merger, Politico reported.
The approval, expected to be announced Friday, came after regulators concluded the deal would not substantially harm competition. The department did not seek to block the transaction and imposed no divestitures, conditions, or other remedies, the sources said.
Neither the Justice Department nor Paramount immediately responded to requests for comment.
The transaction would unite Paramount with Warner Bros. Discovery, whose holdings include CNN, Warner Bros. Pictures, and the HBO Max streaming service.
The deal attracted heightened attention after Netflix abandoned a competing bid for Warner Bros. Discovery following a brief bidding contest.
According to one source, Paramount CEO David Ellison met with Antitrust Division officials for about two hours last month, fielding questions about the merger's competitive effects. Ellison's father, Oracle founder Larry Ellison, is a longtime ally of President Donald Trump.
The federal review may be over, but the deal still faces scrutiny from state regulators. California Attorney General Rob Bonta's office continues to investigate the transaction and could seek to block it.
"The Paramount acquisition of Warner Brothers remains an active investigation," a spokesperson for Bonta's office told Politico earlier this week.
Representatives from several state attorneys general offices, including California and New York, participated in Ellison's meeting with federal officials.
Paramount executives spent months making the case that the merger would strengthen the company's ability to compete with dominant streaming platforms and major technology firms, according to people familiar with the discussions.
The proposal has faced opposition from some industry workers and critics who argue the promised cost savings could result in job losses and further consolidation across the entertainment business. In March, Paramount Chief Operating Officer Andy Gordon told analysts the company expected more than $6 billion in synergies, most of them from non-labor sources.
The Justice Department's decision follows an increasingly public battle over the deal. Paramount this week accused Netflix of mounting a "scorched-earth campaign" against the merger by encouraging opposition from labor groups and others.
Netflix rejected the accusation, calling it "absurd."