Exclusive-DOJ antitrust head says Paramount–Warner Bros deal review is not political

Jody Godoy

WASHINGTON, March 18 (Reuters) – The head of the U.S. Justice Department’s antitrust division told Reuters on Wednesday that Paramount Skydance’s proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery will “absolutely not” receive quick approval due to political factors.

“The idea that law enforcement is somehow politicized is ridiculous,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Omeed Assefi, who declined to comment on the ongoing investigation.

On Wednesday, Warner Bros. shares closed down about 1%, and Paramount shares closed down about 2.5%.

Asefi recently resumed his previous role as acting head of the antitrust division following the departure of Gayle Slater. He previously served as a White House special counsel during Trump’s first administration and worked for more than eight years at the Justice Department, including as a criminal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

“There’s going to be more going on both in terms of mergers and conduct. We’re very positive,” he said.

Asefi gave the example that in 2025, when he was leading the antitrust department’s criminal project, sentences imposed for antitrust crimes increased by 1,200% year-on-year. The U.S. Department of Justice Enforcement Trends Chart shows average jail time increased approximately fivefold in 2025 compared to the previous year.

Paramount Merger Review

Analysts believe Paramount faces an easier path to regulatory approval in the United States, in part because of its political connections. Paramount CEO David Ellison’s father, billionaire Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, has developed ties with President Donald Trump.

“Absolutely not,” Asefi said in response to a question about whether Paramount would get an easier way to review deals because of politics.

“I think even Ted Sarandos has been very vocal and said that he conducted a very open, fair and thorough review under our leadership,” Assefi said of the Netflix CEO.

Netflix’s bid for Warner Bros. studios and streaming assets was under scrutiny from the Justice Department until it walked away from the deal rather than match Paramount’s offer.

Paramount insists its deal poses fewer competition issues than Netflix’s bid. California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the state is investigating the deal.

Cutting-edge “dining table issues”

Assefi said that, like Slater, his antitrust division’s agenda is focused on affordability and “table issues.” Its aim is to “improve people’s lives as quickly as possible” by taking action to combat anti-competitive behavior that raises the price of food, health care and housing.

Asefi said his experience as a criminal prosecutor influenced the way he approaches civil law enforcement.

“I want to focus on our most problematic behavior, improve it, and then move on to the next issue,” he said.

He said the Justice Department’s recent settlement in the Live Nation case was a “historic outcome” that would do more to restore competition than previous government or private lawsuits.

Big tech companies’ ’employee acquisitions’ raise red flags

Asefi also urged companies to participate in the merger review process rather than try to sidestep it through avoidance tactics.

Acquisitions, in which the world’s largest technology companies pay large sums to acquire technology and talent in deals with promising startups without formally acquiring the target, are increasingly viewed by antitrust regulators as an attempt to evade merger rules.

In the most recent example, Nvidia agreed in December to license chip technology from startup Groq and hire its CEO, but not acquire the company.

When companies make acquisitions, they turn over information about the proposed transaction to federal antitrust enforcement agencies. An “acquisition” allows a company to essentially absorb another company without going through a formal merger review process.

“As a litigator and enforcer, that’s more of a red flag to me when I see conduct that seems designed to circumvent the process, as opposed to just participating in and complying” with the review process, Assefi said. “

Companies should be willing to participate in the merger review process, he said. That would allow the Justice Department to quickly understand and resolve any issues, or, if there are no competition concerns with the deal, end the review early and let the deal close, he said.

(Reporting by Jody Godoy in Washington; Editing by Chris Sanders, Howard Gawler, David Garfin and Sonali Paul)