Advertising Law Blog

Andrew Lustigman, Chair of Olshan's Advertising, Marketing & Promotions Group and Co-Chair of the firm’s Brand Management & Protection Group, was quoted in an International Bar Association article entitled “US Presidency: Paramount-Warner Bros Merger Cleared Amid Concerns About Trump Administration Involvement.” The article examines the merger of Paramount and Warner Bros Discovery to form Skydance and its potential implications for competition, intellectual property and the entertainment industry. Andy comments on how the merger could affect licensing and future intellectual property arrangements. While the merger leaves rights in major franchises such as Harry Potter unchanged, he notes that it reduces the number of major studios available to license content. “A streamer or broadcaster now has one fewer major studio to negotiate with,” Andy explains, potentially resulting in tougher renewals and more content being brought back onto the combined company’s own streaming service as existing licenses expire. Andy notes that these effects could be particularly significant outside the United States, where much of this content is licensed on a country-by-country basis. The merger could also have implications for the development of new content, as writers and producers pitching projects now “have one fewer place to sell them.”