Representatives for Paramount and California will meet Monday to discuss settling the lawsuit halting Paramount’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery. These preliminary talks follow complaints from 12 state attorneys general that the merger creates a media powerhouse with outsize market power across studios, streaming, and networks like CNN and CBS News.

California Attorney General Robert Bonta insists only structural remedies, like asset sales, will resolve the case. Paramount’s advisers are evaluating concessions, though executives hesitate to divest combined operations. Any solution must address state concerns over Paramount’s cable and studio sizes relative to their industries.

With a March trial approaching, delays could cost hundreds of millions in fees if the deal misses its October deadline. The transaction pauses until June. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass urged a swift resolution, noting stalled filming and lost jobs. The Writers Guild dismissed this appeal as a corporate pressure campaign.