Overview
- California filed the case in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California in Sacramento, alleging a Section 7 Clayton Act violation.
- DirecTV lodged a separate antitrust suit in the same court, asserting the merger would enable higher retransmission fees and degrade local news quality.
- The state coalition comprises California, New York, Colorado, Illinois, Oregon, North Carolina, Connecticut and Virginia.
- The proposed transaction would combine about 265 stations reaching roughly 80% of U.S. TV households and requires an FCC waiver of the 39% national ownership cap, with FCC and DOJ reviews ongoing as President Trump and FCC Chair Brendan Carr have publicly backed the deal.
- The complaints forecast higher consumer bills, reduced competition in markets including Sacramento–Stockton–Modesto and San Diego, and newsroom consolidation, noting overlap in roughly 31 markets nationwide.