Anti-Trust Hurdles Awaiting 'Warnermount'

Consider: FOUR major deals just fell apart in the last two weeks after being challenged

(Al Seib / Los Angeles Times)

Matt Stoller works at the American Economic Liberties Project. He is the author of Goliath and writes the monopoly-focused newsletter BIG.

Hi, I’m Matt Stoller, a Washington D.C.-based political hack who thinks about antitrust law.

Since the early 1980s, not just in Hollywood but across the economy, business leaders have focused on consolidation as ‘inevitable,’ aka a core business strategy. That era, for a variety of reasons, is ending, but it isn’t over yet. With that in mind, here are some quick thoughts on rumors of the Paramount-Warner merger.

In this column, I will get into:

• How the government reviews mergers.

• Whether the merger is likely to be approved.

• Why David Zaslav and Bob Bakish may be thinking they can roll the dice.

• What happens if Donald Trump is elected president again.

• The four mergers that fell apart in the last two weeks due to challenges, and why one should sound a warning for those trying for more consolidation in Hollywood.