Latest / DEEP INSIGHT / Paramount pushes for settlement in Warner Bros merger case

Transcript

Paramount pushes for settlement in Warner Bros merger case · DEEP INSIGHT

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Today, the next step in the case between Paramount and
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: twelve state attorneys general soueing to block the company's merger
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: with Warner Brothers Discovery is set to begin. The two
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: sides here are expected to begin exchanging documents and gathering evidence,
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: and the pressure is on because Paramount CEO David Ellison
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: is now threatening to take the company out of California.
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: The Only Times reports while Ellison wants to stay in Hollywood,
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: he has signaled interest in Nashville and perhaps Texas, and
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: so the public pressure is starting to spill out a bit,
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: with Xavier Massera, the Democratic nominee to become California's next governor,
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: weighing it.
• 0:38
  Speaker 2: I hope it's settled before court.
• 0:41
  Speaker 3: It is easier to stand in a conference room and
• 0:45
  Speaker 3: settle than it is to stand in a courtroom. I
• 0:48
  Speaker 3: say that, having had to stand both in the conference
• 0:50
  Speaker 3: room and in the courtroom, you get way more done
• 0:53
  Speaker 3: in the conference room than you do in the courtroom.
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: Let's bring in the Democratic Attorney General of California, Rob BONSA,
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: mister Attorney General, your response to Xavier Besserah.
• 1:06
  Speaker 4: He's saying what I've always said and what continues to
• 1:08
  Speaker 4: be true that we prefer to resolve disputes in the boardroom,
• 1:14
  Speaker 4: not the courtroom, if possible, and so coming to the
• 1:17
  Speaker 4: table in this case in good faith to sincerely discuss
• 1:22
  Speaker 4: how to resolve this case has always been on the
• 1:23
  Speaker 4: table and remains on the table. But Paramount Warner brothers
• 1:27
  Speaker 4: breaking the law and expecting us to let them get
• 1:30
  Speaker 4: away with it, that is not on the table and
• 1:32
  Speaker 4: never will be on the table.
• 1:34
  Speaker 2: And that's essentially what they're asking for right now.
• 1:36
  Speaker 4: So I'm in line and aligned with the governor to
• 1:40
  Speaker 4: be in California around resolving cases in the boardroom instead
• 1:44
  Speaker 4: of the courtroom whenever possible.
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: As Javio Besara said, I hope it settles before court.
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: Paramount is floating as you as we reported here, this
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: idea of leaving the state altogether. You've called that threat blackmail,
• 1:56
  Speaker 1: but it doesn't mean they couldn't still do this year.
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: What impact that have on the tens of thousands of
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: people in the broader film and television industry in your state.
• 2:07
  Speaker 4: Let me be clear about that threat. We do see
• 2:10
  Speaker 4: it as blackmail. I have called it blackmail, then I
• 2:11
  Speaker 4: call it blackmail now it's a threat to try to
• 2:14
  Speaker 4: allow the regulators, including my office, who dare to enforce
• 2:18
  Speaker 4: the law against an unlawful merger, to try to threaten us,
• 2:22
  Speaker 4: to allow it to occur, and to let it pass
• 2:26
  Speaker 4: through without any scrutiny or regulatory oversight.
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: And that's not going to happen. That will never happen.
• 2:31
  Speaker 4: This is the second time they're launching this threat. And
• 2:34
  Speaker 4: I want to be clear about this blackmail threat to
• 2:37
  Speaker 4: leave California. That is David Ellison's choice, in his alone.
• 2:41
  Speaker 4: It is his voluntary choice, his independent decision. We're not
• 2:44
  Speaker 4: asking for that, we're not seeking that. Our complaint does
• 2:46
  Speaker 4: not seek to have Paramount leave California. It's his decision
• 2:50
  Speaker 4: to do it, nothing to do with our case. And
• 2:52
  Speaker 4: for someone who has claimed to love Hollywood be committed
• 2:55
  Speaker 4: to Hollywood its future, he's going to have to explain
• 2:57
  Speaker 4: to a lot of people why when he says that
• 3:00
  Speaker 4: out of one side of his mouth, on the other
• 3:01
  Speaker 4: side of his mouth is now saying we're going to
• 3:03
  Speaker 4: leave California. But let me tell you about what is
• 3:05
  Speaker 4: bad for California. This merger is bad for California. This
• 3:08
  Speaker 4: merger that adding will lead to lost jobs.
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: Excuse me, I apologize is this adding though, to pressure
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: that you're now feeling from constituents in your state about
• 3:16
  Speaker 1: that risk.
• 3:17
  Speaker 4: Not at all. It's an empty blackmail threat. And it's
• 3:20
  Speaker 4: his decision alone has nothing to do with the case.
• 3:22
  Speaker 4: Our case continues whether they're in California or not in California.
• 3:26
  Speaker 4: It doesn't allow them to escape liability, doesn't change the
• 3:30
  Speaker 4: basics of this bread and butter, black and white meat,
• 3:35
  Speaker 4: and potatoes antitrust case. They unfortunately have lost the plot
• 3:39
  Speaker 4: here and continue to lose in court. They want to
• 3:41
  Speaker 4: talk about everything except for what the case is about.
• 3:43
  Speaker 4: They want to talk about CNN. This case is not
• 3:45
  Speaker 4: about that. They want to talk about the streaming market.
• 3:47
  Speaker 4: This case is not about that. They want to talk
• 3:48
  Speaker 4: about what foreign regulators around the world have done.
• 3:51
  Speaker 2: This case is not about that.
• 3:52
  Speaker 4: If they are willing to talk to us about structural
• 3:54
  Speaker 4: remedies about the three markets that we complain or that
• 3:57
  Speaker 4: we allege in our complaint have unlawful concentration that viallet
• 4:01
  Speaker 4: anti trust law, we're happy to do that.
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: Have you heard from Governor Newsom on it?
• 4:06
  Speaker 4: But Governor Newsom is a friend and he is someone
• 4:10
  Speaker 4: I have the most respect and admiration for I think
• 4:13
  Speaker 4: he's probably the most incredible elect official I've ever seen
• 4:16
  Speaker 4: in my life. I'm grateful for all he's done for
• 4:17
  Speaker 4: California and all he'll do for our country in the
• 4:19
  Speaker 4: years ahead, because I value his relationship and his friendship
• 4:23
  Speaker 4: so much. His and my private conversations and communications will
• 4:27
  Speaker 4: always remain private, but we do converse and communicate about
• 4:31
  Speaker 4: a whole variety of things about the future of California.
• 4:33
  Speaker 2: I'm grateful I to have the opportunity to do that.
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: Well, let me ask you if I can't. Americans have
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: obviously seen what has happened at CBS News. There's concerns
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: right now that something similar could happen at a Warner
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: Brothers Discovery owns CNN. David Ellison says that this fight
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: is really about whether he can be trusted with CNN.
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: You say that's a distraction from the facts in this case.
• 4:53
  Speaker 3: Right now?
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: Does California have any interest in one company owning both
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: CNN and c News? Why is that so problematic?
• 5:04
  Speaker 4: We have an interest in our anti trust case, and
• 5:07
  Speaker 4: our anti trust case talks about three markets, widespread theatrical
• 5:11
  Speaker 4: relief distribution, Blockbuster theatrical relief distribution, and cable channel licensing,
• 5:16
  Speaker 4: and CNN is not a part of that. That is
• 5:19
  Speaker 4: something that David Elson, who has politicized this case, wants
• 5:23
  Speaker 4: to talk about.
• 5:24
  Speaker 2: That's not what this case is about.
• 5:25
  Speaker 4: So we like to talk about what this case is about,
• 5:27
  Speaker 4: which is set forth in our complaint. Of course, as
• 5:31
  Speaker 4: a American, as someone who's shown public service, as someone
• 5:35
  Speaker 4: who cares about democracy and the rule of law in
• 5:38
  Speaker 4: the future of this country. Of course I care about
• 5:40
  Speaker 4: the independent, free press and their ability to ask tough questions,
• 5:45
  Speaker 4: hold the powerful accountable truth be truth seekers and truth
• 5:49
  Speaker 4: finders and truth tellers. But that is separate from this
• 5:53
  Speaker 4: anti trust case. So we want to talk about this
• 5:55
  Speaker 4: anti trust case. I hope David Elson will at some
• 5:57
  Speaker 4: point as well.
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: Rob Bonta is the California Attorney General. Mister Attorney General,
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: I appreciate your joining us here on State of Play.
• 6:04
  Speaker 2: A great pleasure. Thanks for having me.
• 6:05
  Speaker 4: Peter