Britain said yesterday it could intervene in Paramount Skydance Corp’s proposed takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), potentially holding up the $110 billion deal ‌after the US and China gave it the green light.

According to a Reuters report from London, the move is the first step in a process that could see the deal referred to the UK’s anti-trust regulator, which made headlines in 2023 when it blocked Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of ‘Call of Duty’ maker Activision Blizzard to the fury of the two US companies. It later changed ​its mind after Microsoft amended its acquisition plan.

Britain’s possible intervention comes as the global deal has already been cleared by the United States, China, ​Australia, Germany, France and Saudi Arabia.

EU antitrust regulators are now assessing the deal, with Paramount set to offer remedies ⁠this week to address competition concerns which will likely help them secure EU approval for the deal. Any lengthy hold up in Britain could ​have wider ramifications.

To signal confidence in winning swift regulatory approval, Paramount has offered Warner Bros Discovery shareholders a “ticking fee” of 25 cents a share ​for every quarter the deal does not close beyond September 30. That works out to roughly $650 million in cash each quarter. 

Paramount said on Tuesday it was confident the deal did not pose any issues on media plurality and it remained confident in its stated timeline. Warner did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Britain’s Culture Minister Lisa Nandy, who set a July 6 deadline for the companies to respond, said in a statement: “I ​am mindful of the need to reach a final decision in a timely manner, and I will endeavour to do so as appropriate.”

Nandy said while the ‌deal was ⁠global in nature it could have an impact on the provision of news and on-demand services in Britain.

Paramount owns Britain’s Channel 5, a free-to-air broadcaster which broadcasts news programmes, while Warner owns CNN International.

Other businesses that the UK government said could be affected include TNT Sports, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, as well as Paramount+ and HBO Max.

Nandy said current legislation does not cover on-demand services as it was drafted when viewing was largely via broadcast ​television, adding that she would introduce ​secondary legislation if needed.