A federal judge has scheduled a hearing for Thursday to examine a proposed settlement between state attorneys general and Paramount-Warner Bros Discovery. Judge Araceli Martinez-Olguin will scrutinise the legal and factual foundations of the consent decree, which would resolve the antitrust lawsuit filed by state AGs in July. This settlement represents a significant development in the regulatory challenges facing the media merger.

The settlement requires Paramount to commit to releasing at least 30 films annually and to establish an independent board overseeing journalistic standards at CNN and CBS News. The judge has cancelled a separate hearing regarding bonding requirements for the state AGs and will determine at a later date whether to dismiss the Writers Guild of America's lawsuit attempting to block the merger. The WGA has also reached its own settlement agreement with Paramount to resolve its litigation.