Paramount seeks $1.88 billion bond in Warner Bros. Discovery merger case
Paramount wants 12 states challenging its Warner Bros. Discovery deal to post security for claimed delay costs as a March 2027 trial nears.
By Maya Lindqvist · Senior Technology Correspondent
3 min read
Paramount Skydance has asked a federal judge to require 12 states challenging its Warner Bros. Discovery acquisition to post a Paramount $1.88 billion bond. The request would not make the states pay Paramount now; it seeks financial security that Paramount could draw on if it wins the antitrust case and the delay has caused losses, according to Paramount’s motion as reported by Variety.
The company wants Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín to modify the existing court-approved agreement preventing the deal from closing. Under Paramount’s request, that order would dissolve unless the plaintiffs post a $1,884,726,092.73 bond by Sept. 30, 2026, Variety reported.
Why is Paramount seeking a $1.88 billion bond?
Paramount says the proposed security reflects the costs it expects from a delayed closing of its roughly $110 billion purchase of Warner Bros. Discovery. The company calculates about $1.69 billion in projected ticking fees from Oct. 1, 2026, through June 1, 2027, plus $190 million in additional financing costs, according to Variety.
A ticking fee is a contractual payment that grows while a deal remains unfinished. Paramount says it will owe Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders roughly $7 million a day after Sept. 30 if the transaction has not closed, Reuters reported. CNBC reported the agreement calls for an extra 25 cents per Warner Bros. Discovery share each quarter, an amount estimated at about $650 million per quarter.
Paramount said it expects to have paid about $1.3 billion in ticking fees by the end of trial and final briefing, costs it says it could not recover without a bond. The company also argues that an extended delay could force it to seek regulatory approvals again, according to Deadline.
The states’ lawsuit is an antitrust law challenge, meaning it alleges the merger would reduce competition. California Attorney General Rob Bonta and attorneys general from 11 other states sued in July, arguing the combination could lessen competition in theatrical and blockbuster films and basic cable television, according to Variety.
When will the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery case go to trial?
Trial is scheduled to begin March 2, 2027, Variety and Deadline reported. Paramount previously agreed to hold off on closing the deal while the state case proceeds, with the closing potentially delayed until June 2027, CNBC reported.
Bonta’s office said Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery knowingly included the ticking-fee provision in their contract and understood the deal would face regulatory scrutiny. It also said Paramount had agreed to the court timetable it now challenges, according to CNBC and Reuters.
The judge previously waived a bond requirement when granting a 28-day temporary restraining order, finding that the states had shown they were pursuing important public interests, Variety reported. The court has not yet decided Paramount’s latest request.
This story draws on original reporting from CNBC.