Paramount Skydance announced on August 14, 2026 that Mexico's National Antitrust Commission (CNA) approved its merger with Warner Bros. Discovery, a deal valued at more than $100 billion. Mexico became the 68th country to grant approval, according to the company's press release.
The deal brings together the catalogs of HBO, Warner Bros., CNN, and CBS under a single group, assets that function as subscription and customer-retention engines, according to Expansión. For Mexican consumers, the change matters because HBO Max and much of the streaming consumed in the country will come to depend on a single group with greater leverage to negotiate licenses and commercial terms. Consultant Isabel Reza, of Regulatory Experts, told Expansión that the regulatory focus centered on whether the deal would close off access to relevant content or raise its cost for competitors. The review took eight months and, beyond Mexico, drew approvals from the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada, Brazil, and the U.S. Department of Justice, among other jurisdictions, according to El CEO.
The one remaining obstacle is the lawsuit filed by the state of California and 11 other state attorneys general in the United States, who argue that the merger harms the distribution of films and television programs and reduces employment in the sector, as reported by Expansión. David Ellison, CEO of Paramount, said the litigation "stands as a final obstacle" to closing the merger and creating a stronger competitor with greater capacity to invest in premium content. The company stated that it has already met all required regulatory approvals and that the deal is ready to close, but that the additional delay is imposing costs through fines, litigation expenses, and disruption to commercial activity, according to El CEO.
What happens next plays out in a U.S. courtroom: the lawsuit brought by the 12 state attorneys general keeps the deal on hold. The outcome will determine when the combined Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery group begins operating at full capacity in Mexico's streaming market.
This article was drafted with the assistance of artificial intelligence based on verified sources and reviewed by a human editor before publication.