Paramount Skydance has announced that it will withdraw from its film distribution partnership United International Pictures (UIP) with Universal Pictures to gain approval from the European Union for Warner Bros. Discovery's $111 billion acquisition. This information was included in a regulatory filing made public on Wednesday. The European Commission's antitrust authorities aim to address the competition concerns raised by European cinema operators regarding the Paramount-WBD merger by proposing that Paramount divest its UIP shares.

Founded in 1981, London-based UIP was a significant international distributor for both studios. However, over the years, its operations have shrunk, and it currently operates in only a few European markets, including Denmark, Greece, Croatia, Hungary, Norway, Poland, and Sweden. The European Commission did not provide further details about the solutions proposed by Paramount to address concerns related to the WBD agreement.

This mega merger was announced following Netflix's rival bid for WBD in February. Paramount's assets, including CBS, CBS News, Paramount Pictures, and Paramount+, will be combined with Warner Bros. Discovery's assets, such as HBO, HBO Max, Warner Bros. Pictures, CNN, TNT, TBS, and HGTV. The deal includes a total investment of $24 billion from the Saudi Public Investment Fund, Abu Dhabi's L’imad Holding Company, and the Qatar Investment Authority.

The U.S. Department of Justice has approved the deal. In the United Kingdom, however, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy has indicated that she is considering intervening in the agreement due to concerns about media diversity. Nandy has raised the possibility of Channel 5 and TNT Sports merging under joint ownership with Paramount+ and HBO Max. The UK Competition and Markets Authority is conducting a separate review that will influence Nandy's final decision. Paramount has not yet commented on the matter.