2026-09-21T21:24:00.933Z / 路透社
华盛顿，9月21日（路透社）——批评人士迅速谴责加州推动的与派拉蒙天空影业（PSKY.O）达成的和解协议，该协议为这家公司以1100亿美元收购华纳兄弟探索公司（WBD.O）扫清了道路。批评人士称，该协议将损害好莱坞的竞争格局，未能保护就业，且这家媒体集团未作出实质性让步。
反对这项并购的人士指责加州总检察长罗布·邦塔和州长加文·纽瑟姆向富裕利益集团屈服，尤其是在派拉蒙首席执行官大卫·埃利森威胁称如果诉讼不被撤销，该公司将迁出加州之后。
“如今，亿万富翁们再次通过贿赂、审查和打压手段登顶，”美国前联邦贸易委员会成员、美国经济自由项目顾问阿尔瓦罗·贝杜亚说道，“随之而来的将是裁员。从洛杉矶到亚特兰大的民众都会失业，小企业会失去合同，你的有线电视账单和电影票价还会更高。”
对和解协议的不满情绪不仅在好莱坞蔓延，这也凸显了民主党内部日益加剧的分歧：温和派更倾向于支持商业发展，而进步人士则主张采取更强硬的立场，为美国消费者带来实惠。
马萨诸塞州联邦参议员、民主党人伊丽莎白·沃伦批评了这项协议，并表示派拉蒙是“未来支持竞争的政府开展反垄断审查的明确对象”。
“这项和解协议批准了一场反垄断灾难，将导致价格上涨、就业岗位减少，并让少数亿万富翁在美国媒体行业发号施令，”她说道。
“并非对并购的支持”
邦塔在周一的新闻发布会上表示，这项和解协议“并非对此次收购的支持”，因为“它不利于竞争”。但他同时辩称，该协议将为加州带来更多影视制作业务。
埃利森周一表示，这笔交易将加强竞争，惠及消费者和员工。
派拉蒙和邦塔的发言人并未立即回应针对该协议的批评言论置评请求。
邦塔从一开始就表示，结构性救济措施——即一家公司出售部分业务——比承诺改变或维持商业惯例更有效。
然而，这项和解协议并未要求派拉蒙出售任何有线电视频道，或是邦塔所说的使其与华纳在院线电影发行方面形成强大组合的任何业务板块，例如其利润丰厚的知识产权。
派拉蒙拥有《壮志凌云》《碟中谍》和《星际迷航》等知名系列IP，而华纳兄弟则拥有蝙蝠侠、哈利·波特和《指环王》的版权。
和解协议包括为CNN和CBS设立独立编辑委员会，以及针对派拉蒙每年发行30部电影的承诺，如果未达标，每部电影将处以3000万美元的罚款，同时派拉蒙承诺将与电视发行商单独谈判。不过，这些承诺是临时性的，将在3至5年内失效。
今年7月提起诉讼后，确保并购不会通过减少影视制作数量损害美国娱乐业，是许多人的首要目标。行业整合以及更廉价的替代制作地点，已经导致好莱坞出现失业现象。
公共知识组织法律主任约翰·伯格迈尔表示，此次并购“会让争夺剧本和人才的制片厂更少，让一家公司拥有更大的权力向发行商 dictate 条款，并减少流媒体选择。消费者将面临更高的价格，而编剧和其他创意工作者将更少有雇主竞价聘用他们”。
邦塔阻止这笔交易的努力也遭到了批评。艾奥瓦州和蒙大拿州要求美国最高法院介入并阻止此案，以保护这笔交易。
代表影院运营商的行业组织美国影院联盟曾敦促邦塔与派拉蒙达成和解，希望避免行业进一步陷入不确定性和动荡。该组织旗下包括喜满客、AMC和 regal影院，代表了美国3万块电影银幕。
克里斯·桑德斯 华盛顿报道，乔迪·戈多伊 德克萨斯州奥斯汀报道；比尔·伯克罗特 编辑
Critics say California got too little in deal to let Paramount buy Warner Bros
2026-09-21T21:24:00.933Z / Reuters
WASHINGTON, Sept 21 (Reuters) – Critics swiftly decried a California-driven settlement with Paramount Skydance
(PSKY.O)
that cleared the way for its $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery
(WBD.O)
, saying it will hurt competition in Hollywood, failed to protect jobs and lacks substantial concessions from the media conglomerate.
Opponents of the merger accused California Attorney General Rob Bonta and Governor Gavin Newsom of caving to wealthy interests, particularly Paramount CEO David Ellison, after Paramount threatened to leave the state if the lawsuit was not dropped.
“Today, billionaires have yet again bribed, censored, and bullied their way to the top,” said Alvaro Bedoya, a former member of the US Federal Trade Commission and adviser at the American Economic Liberties Project. “Layoffs will follow. People from L.A. to Atlanta will lose their jobs, small businesses will lose their contracts, your cable bill and movie ticket will be even more expensive.”
Disappointment with the settlement rippled beyond Hollywood, illustrating a growing split in the Democratic Party between moderates, who are more business-friendly, and progressives, who seek a harder line to deliver affordability for US consumers.
US Senator Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts, criticized the deal, and said Paramount is a “clear candidate for antitrust scrutiny in a future pro-competition administration.”
“This settlement greenlights an anti-monopoly disaster that will result in higher prices and fewer jobs, and enables a handful of billionaires to call the shots in the American media,” she said.
‘NOT A VOTE OF SUPPORT’
Bonta, in a press conference on Monday, said the settlement is “not a vote of support” of the acquisition, because “it does not serve competition well.” But he also argued it would amount to more production in California.
Ellison said on Monday that the deal will strengthen competition and benefit consumers and workers.
Spokespeople for Paramount and Bonta did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the reaction by critics of the deal.
Bonta had said from the outset that structural remedies, where a company sells off part of its business, are superior to promises to change or uphold business practices.
Yet the settlement does not require Paramount to sell off any cable channels, or any component of what Bonta said made Paramount and Warner such a formidable combo in theatrical film distribution, such as its lucrative intellectual property.
Paramount owns name-brand franchises including “Top Gun”, “Mission: Impossible”, and Star Trek, while Warner Bros holds the rights to Batman, Harry Potter, and “Lord of the Rings”.
The settlement includes the creation of independent editorial boards for CNN and CBS, and a $30 million penalty per film for any shortfall against Paramount’s pledge to release 30 movies annually, as well as a commitment to bargain separately with television distributors. The commitments are temporary, however, and expire within three to five years.
Ensuring the merger would not harm the US entertainment industry by reducing the number of theatrical and television productions was a top priority for many after the lawsuit was filed in July. Consolidation as well as cheaper alternative production locations have led to job losses in Hollywood.
John Bergmayer, legal director at Public Knowledge, said the merger “leaves fewer studios competing for scripts and talent, gives one company greater power to dictate terms to distributors, and reduces streaming choices. Consumers will face higher prices, while writers and other creative workers will have fewer employers bidding for their work.”
Bonta’s bid to block the deal had its detractors, too. Iowa and Montana asked the US Supreme Court to step in and block the case, in a bid to protect the deal.
Cinema United, a trade organization representing theater owners, had urged Bonta to discuss a settlement with Paramount, in hopes of avoiding further uncertainty and disruption in the industry. Cinemark, AMC and Regal are part of the group, which represents 30,000 US movie screens.
Reporting by Chris Sanders in Washington and Jody Godoy in Austin, Texas; Editing by Bill Berkrot
发表回复