California calls off meeting with Paramount over WBD takeover, NYT reports

By Anna Cooban, Brian Stelter, CNN

London (CNN) — California’s attorney general has reportedly scrapped talks scheduled for Monday with representatives of Paramount over the company’s planned $110 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery.

The parties were due to discuss a potential settlement of California’s lawsuit that is attempting to block the merger and was canceled late on Sunday by Attorney General Rob Bonta, the New York Times reported on Monday.

In a statement to the NYT, Bonta accused Paramount of leaking information from a Friday meeting between the two sides.

“Not only did Paramount leak the alleged substance of settlement discussions, but they misrepresented these discussions, demonstrating a lack of good faith,” Bonta said in the statement. “As soon as Paramount stops playing games and engages sincerely, my office is happy to meet again.”

CNN has reached out to Paramount and Bonta’s office for comment.

Paramount is trying to merge its movie studio and television operations with WBD, the parent of CNN, HBO, Discovery, the Warner Bros. studio and many other assets.

But a coalition of 12 Democratic state attorneys general, including California, filed suit last month to block the merger, arguing that it would violate anti-trust law and ultimately harm Hollywood by squeezing out competition.

Despite the opening of talks, the two sides apparently remain far apart.

Bonta said Friday night that any resolution would have to include “robust structural remedies” that would change the shape of the media mega-merger. Structural remedies refer to divestitures, spin-offs and other changes to the makeup of the combined company.

A court date for an antitrust trial is scheduled for March – an expensive wait for Paramount. Under the merger agreement, Paramount must pay WBD shareholders roughly $7 million for every day after September 30 that the deal has not closed.

Paramount has insisted that the WBD deal is pro-competitive, and has asserted that the deal’s opponents are driven by political concerns, including the prospect of CNN changing hands. Bonta has disputed those charges.

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CNN’s Diego Mendoza contributed to this report