Subscribers Ask Court to Keep HBO Max and Paramount+ Separate After Merger Closes

Five Paramount+ and HBO Max subscribers asked a court on Oct. 16 to order Paramount Skydance to hold and operate separately the Warner Bros. Discovery businesses it acquired, according to Deadline’s report, which PYMNTS and Crónica relayed on Oct. 19. The plaintiffs are Pamela Faust, Len Marazzo, Lisa McCarthy, Deborah Rubinsohn and Gary Talewsky.

The $110 billion acquisition closed on Oct. 6, and earlier in October a federal judge approved a settlement that resolved the states’ antitrust case and lifted the injunction that had blocked the closing, Bloomberg Law reported.

What the Filing Asks For

The plaintiffs want Paramount Skydance Corporation and Skydance Media, LLC to “hold and operate separately, pending final adjudication or further order” the Warner Bros. Discovery businesses and assets necessary to preserve viable independent HBO Max and Paramount+ services, Cord Cutters News reported, citing Deadline.

The stated purpose is to preserve the court’s ability to order a divestiture if the plaintiffs win. Crónica, a Spanish-language report, described the motion as a request for a preliminary injunction against integrating the two services while the case is heard. In it, the plaintiffs argue integration could cause changes that cannot be reversed.

The plaintiffs are asking for a December hearing.

Key Dates
The acquisition closed Oct. 6, 2026. The subscribers refiled their request on Oct. 16, and Deadline’s report of it was relayed on Oct. 19.

How the Case Got Here

Judge Martínez-Olguín dismissed the original subscriber case filed in April, according to Cord Cutters News. The plaintiffs were allowed to refile, and they did so on a Friday, Oct. 16.

On July 16, the same judge denied this group of Paramount subscribers a preliminary injunction against the then-pending merger. TheWrap quoted her as saying at a hearing that the plaintiffs “have not offered any evidence” and had not made a clear showing of likely success. She also found they had not clearly shown irreparable harm.

Paramount had argued that the plaintiffs lacked standing and had identified no injury. It said any price increase could not be tied to a merger that had not yet occurred.

The deal has since closed. The states’ case ended in a settlement approved earlier in October, after a coalition of 12 state attorneys general won a temporary restraining order in July.

What It Means for HBO Max and Paramount+

The combined company operates under the Skydance name. It has said HBO Max and Paramount+ will “unify into a single service over time,” Cord Cutters News reported.

David Ellison, Skydance’s chief executive, said the services would keep operating separately and independently in the short term but that the plan is basically to bring them together, according to a Spanish-language report from Crónica. That report said Skydance is reportedly working on joint bundle offers in a relatively short timeframe.

The plaintiffs argue that consolidation across the entertainment industry, including the Disney-Fox and Amazon-MGM deals, harms consumers, Cord Cutters News reported.

Where Hollywood Labour Stands

The Writers Guild of America separately challenged the deal in court, raising concerns about “employment opportunities and compensation for writers,” PYMNTS reported. The guild’s suit is a different case from the subscribers’ action.

A restriction on combining the platforms could complicate efforts to coordinate programming, marketing, technology and subscriber operations, PYMNTS reported.

What Happens Next

In July the judge described a preliminary injunction as an extraordinary remedy that may only be awarded upon a clear showing the plaintiff is entitled to such relief.