EU antitrust regulators clear Paramount-WBD merger

European Union antitrust regulators said on Wednesday they had signed off on Paramount Skydance’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.

The approval, which included concessions made by Paramount, comes as the deal has been delayed in the U.S. due to concerns raised by state attorneys general.

A Paramount spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to comment.

In order to garner the approval, the European Commission, the executive body of the EU, said Paramount agreed to divest its stake in a film distribution joint venture with United International Pictures in Europe, and said it would not enter into any film distribution deal with Universal for the next 10 years in Europe.

“These commitments fully address the competition concerns identified by the Commission by ensuring that the films of the merged entity will not be distributed jointly with those Universal or Disney,” according to the EU’s release.

Paramount’s stock rose nearly 3% in afternoon trading.

The EU’s approval marks a major regulatory milestone for the $110 billion proposed merger.

The deal earlier won approval from the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. Various other global jurisdictions have also signed off on the deal.

However, in the U.S., a lawsuit brought forward by a group of state attorneys general last week has become a potential holdup in this deal moving forward.

The coalition led by California’s Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit seeking to block the merger due to antitrust concerns. The tie-up is set to combine two major film studios, Paramount and Warner Bros., a massive portfolio of pay TV networks, and streaming services HBO Max and Paramount+.

Earlier this week a California district judge granted a temporary restraining order that puts a 14-day pause on anything moving forward with the merger.

Paramount previously said it is on track to close the merger by the end of September.