Paramount has pushed back the expected closing date for its $110 billion takeover of Warner Bros. to no earlier than July 22, according to the office of Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield, announced Wednesday.
Rayfield’s office filed a request in Multnomah County court Wednesday asking a judge to compel Paramount to turn over records and halt the deal for 60 days while the state conducts its review.
The company had previously committed to Oregon that it would not finalize the deal before July 16. However, during a preliminary court hearing on the state’s request Wednesday, Paramount extended that deadline by an additional week, according to Rayfield’s office.
On a separate front, Paramount has proposed concessions to resolve competition concerns raised by the European Union. Among those remedies, sources told Reuters last week, is a plan to exit its film distribution joint venture with Universal Pictures — a move intended to help the media company secure approval from the European Commission.
Following Paramount’s proposed remedies, the European Commission pushed its decision deadline from July 7 to July 22 to allow additional time to evaluate the offer.
