Overview
- U.S. District Judge Troy Nunley issued the injunction Friday and it takes effect Tuesday at 5 p.m. PT when an earlier restraining order expires.
- DirecTV and eight state attorneys general argue the merger would boost Nexstar’s leverage in talks over retransmission fees, which are the payments TV providers make to carry local stations, driving up consumer bills and blackout risks.
- While the case proceeds, the order keeps Nexstar and Tegna operating as separate companies and bars any step to combine station operations or management.
- Nexstar says the transaction closed after approvals from the Justice Department and the FCC’s Media Bureau, maintains it owns Tegna, and plans to appeal to the Ninth Circuit.
- Opponents say a combined portfolio of roughly 259–265 stations reaching about 80% of U.S. homes would blow past the long‑standing 39% ownership cap and raise wider questions about the FCC’s power to waive that limit.