U.S. District Court Chief Judge Troy L. Nunley in Sacramento, California, blocked a $6.2 billion merger between Nexstar Media Group and Tegna on Friday, finding that eight state attorneys general and DirecTV were likely to succeed in their antitrust lawsuit. The deal, announced last year and previously approved by the Federal Communications Commission, would have created a company owning 265 television stations across 44 states and Washington, D.C.
Nunley had already issued an emergency order blocking the transaction for three weeks before extending the block pending resolution of the lawsuit. The judge noted that the merger would make Nexstar the owner of two or even three of the "Big Four" local affiliates in 31 local television markets, giving the company significant leverage over cable and satellite providers.
State attorneys general and DirecTV contend the merger will raise consumer prices, reduce local journalism, and violate federal antitrust laws. New York Attorney General Letitia James stated in a statement that "consolidating hundreds of local TV stations under one corporate owner would mean higher prices and lower quality programming for consumers" and called the ruling "a critical victory."
Nexstar's legal team argued the deal had already undergone thorough regulatory review and received clearance from both the FCC and the Justice Department. The company noted the FCC order requires it to expand local journalism and programming rather than shrink it. Nexstar said it will appeal the ruling and emphasized that the transaction closed more than four weeks ago following all required regulatory approvals.
Judge Nunley wrote that once Nexstar controls multiple "Big Four" affiliates in the same markets, multichannel video programming distributors such as DirecTV would face pressure to accept higher broadcast fees or risk losing subscribers' access to popular programming like Sunday NFL football games. The FCC had waived ownership rules to permit the merger, with FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announcing in March that Nexstar agreed to divest six stations as a condition of approval.
U.S. District Court Chief Judge Troy L. Nunley in Sacramento, California, blocked a $6.2 billion merger between Nexstar Media Group and Tegna on Friday, finding that eight state attorneys general and DirecTV were likely to succeed in their antitrust lawsuit. The deal, announced last year and previously approved by the Federal Communications Commission, would have created a company owning 265 television stations across 44 states and Washington, D.C.
Nunley had already issued an emergency order blocking the transaction for three weeks before extending the block pending resolution of the lawsuit. The judge noted that the merger would make Nexstar the owner of two or even three of the "Big Four" local affiliates in 31 local television markets, giving the company significant leverage over cable and satellite providers.
Eight Democratic state attorneys general and DirecTV contend the merger will raise consumer prices, reduce local journalism, and violate federal antitrust laws. New York Attorney General Letitia James stated in a statement that "consolidating hundreds of local TV stations under one corporate owner would mean higher prices and lower quality programming for consumers" and called the ruling "a critical victory."
Nexstar's legal team argued the deal had already undergone thorough regulatory review and received clearance from both the FCC and the Justice Department. The company noted the FCC order requires it to expand local journalism and programming rather than shrink it. Nexstar said it will appeal the ruling and emphasized that the transaction closed more than four weeks ago following all required regulatory approvals.
Judge Nunley wrote that once Nexstar controls multiple "Big Four" affiliates in the same markets, multichannel video programming distributors such as DirecTV would face pressure to accept higher broadcast fees or risk losing subscribers' access to popular programming like Sunday NFL football games. The FCC had waived ownership rules to permit the merger, with FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announcing in March that Nexstar agreed to divest six stations as a condition of approval.
The blocked merger represents a significant setback for the Trump administration's approach to media consolidation, as the deal had received FCC and Justice Department approval before the court intervention.
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