Paramount-Warner Bros. Merger Faces Hurdle as Oregon Seeks 60-Day Delay

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Oregon's Attorney General said today that he will ask a court to pause the proposed $110 billion merger between Paramount (Paramount) and Warner Bros (Warner Bros) for 60 days, citing Paramount's failure to provide records of its lobbying efforts.

Although Paramount has informed the state that it will not finalize the deal before July 16, Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield stated that he will request the Multnomah County Court to order Paramount to submit relevant documents and delay the transaction to allow the state government to complete its review.

Rayfield said in a statement, "We will not allow Paramount Skydance (Paramount Skydance) to play a shell game and rush this massive merger... This transaction is critical to the interests of the people of Oregon, including our film industry, our overall economy, and the choices consumers will have in the future."

A spokesperson for Paramount responded that the information requested by Oregon "is irrelevant to whether this transaction complies with Oregon's antitrust laws and does not justify delaying a clearly legal and pro-competitive transaction." The spokesperson also stated that they have provided the state government with all important documents related to the merger.

Oregon is seeking documents related to "Project Warrior" (Project Warrior), which is the internal code name used by Paramount for obtaining regulatory approval for the transaction.

The Oregon government is also requesting Paramount to provide records of its lobbying efforts with the Trump administration to gain support for the merger.

Paramount CEO David Ellison's father is Oracle (Oracle) co-founder and billionaire Larry Ellison (Larry Ellison), who has maintained a long-standing good relationship with U.S. President Trump. Paramount has also hired several former Trump administration officials.

Furthermore, Oregon wishes to understand whether Paramount was involved in the process related to the statement issued by the U.S. Department of Justice approving the transaction.

Reuters reported last month, citing sources familiar with the matter, that the governments of California, New York, and several other states were preparing to file lawsuits to block the merger. (Compiled by Hsu Rui-cheng) 1150708)