Netflix trying to "poison regulators" about WBD merger, Paramount lawyer claims

Paramount Global's chief legal officer, Makan Delrahim, accused Netflix of orchestrating a campaign to "poison regulators" against the proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) by Skydance Media. In a June 5 letter addressed to the US Department of Justice's (DOJ) Antitrust Division, Delrahim stated that Netflix's "panic-level response and scorched-earth campaign" demonstrates how seriously Netflix views Paramount as a "scaled competitor." This accusation comes in response to a March letter sent by The International Brotherhood of Teamsters to the DOJ. The Teamsters, representing 1.3 million members in film and TV, argued that the Paramount-WBD merger would jeopardize jobs and urged the DOJ to block the deal unless significant safeguards were implemented to boost domestic production and protect employment. The letter from Delrahim, who previously served as an assistant attorney general for the Antitrust Division, was first reported by Politico.