Демократические лидеры округа Гудзон, штат Нью-Джерси, призывают генерального прокурора Дженнифер Дэвенпорт вывести штат из участия в иске, направленном на остановку слияния Paramount-Skydance и Warner Bros. Discovery.

В колонке, опубликованной в New Jersey Globe, мэр Бэйонна Шэрон Эше-Надовски, исполнительный директор округа Гудзон Крейг Гай, сенаторы штата Радж Мукхерджи, Брайан Стэк и Анджела Макнайт, а также члены ассамблеи штата Джерри Уокер, Уильям Сэмпсон, Рави Бхалла, Кэти Бреннан, Ларри Уайнстайн и Габриэл Родригес призвали Дэвенпорт вывести Нью-Джерси из этого дела, ссылаясь на потенциальные экономические выгоды для штата.

Чиновники написали, что, хотя они доверяют независимому суждению Дэвенпорт, "The extraordinary stakes for New Jersey in this matter, however, give rise to this rare but consequential disagreement."

"New Jersey has spent years building a film and television industry capable of competing with New York, California, Georgia and production centers around the world including the U.K., attracting transformational investments from Netflix and Lionsgate," the officials wrote. "Paramount has become a critical participant in that effort and has committed to establishing a substantial, long-term production presence in Bayonne."

Группа заявила, что план развития 1888 Studios в Бэйонне — это самая значимая экономическая возможность, которая появлялась у округа Гудзон за последние годы.

"This is the creation of an entirely new economic ecosystem and a self-sustaining creative economy in our state: careers for electricians, laborers, carpenters, stagehands, technicians, artists, and countless others; new customers for our small businesses; and, critically, accessible pathways into a growing industry for young people and working families who too often have been excluded from the prosperity being created around them. Its economic reverberations will extend well beyond the studio gates," the Hudson County officials said.

По словам чиновников, проект принесет около $1.2 млрд капитальных затрат на кампус Paramount, а также постоянные съемочные павильоны и постпродакшн-объекты в округе и постоянные рабочие места.

Избранные должностные лица округа Гудзон также выразили обеспокоенность расходами на судебный процесс, заявив, что деньги налогоплательщиков не следует направлять на дело, которое они назвали сомнительным, особенно с учетом того, что Нью-Джерси стремится расширять киноиндустрию и привлекать внешние инвестиции.

"We are increasingly concerned that New Jersey taxpayer dollars are being committed to litigation whose merits appear uncertain while its potential costs to the State and to our economy continue to escalate," they wrote. "After an exhaustive eight-month investigation involving review of more than 2 million documents, the U.S. Department of Justice concluded that the transaction was unlikely to harm competition in streaming, linear television, or theatrical film."

Они призвали генерального прокурора вывести Нью-Джерси из коалиции.

"Now that New Jersey is a party to this litigation, whether or not we might have chosen a different course at the outset, the question is how best to protect the interests of the State going forward. We respectfully urge our Attorney General to withdraw our state from this action or work toward a prompt and reasonable resolution of this matter and to be a voice of reason in the room," they wrote.

"The State should have an exceptionally compelling reason before spending taxpayer dollars on multi-state litigation of uncertain merit that may undermine those very investments," the county leaders added.

Губернатор Нью-Джерси Мики Шерилл заявила Fox News Digital: "We are excited to welcome Paramount to Hudson County because film is in New Jersey's DNA — we're Hollywood East and the only state where film shoots are up this year. New Jersey is open for film business, so we are going to keep building, keep filming, and keep making it easier for companies like Paramount to create good-paying jobs and lay down roots in the Garden State."

Офис Дэвенпорт сообщил Fox News Digital, что не будет комментировать колонку чиновников округа Гудзон.

В пресс-релизе от июля офис Дэвенпорт заявил, что присоединяется к коалиции, оспаривающей слияние, в которую входят, в том числе, Калифорния, Колорадо и Нью-Йорк, отметив: "The proposed merger would combine two of Hollywood’s five major film distributors and two of the five major basic cable companies, extinguishing competition between Paramount and Warner Bros. and inflicting substantial harm on movie theaters, basic cable distributors, and, ultimately, consumers nationwide."

"New Jersey is the birthplace of the American film industry, and the state is now a burgeoning hub for film and television production. Given our state’s leadership in the film and television industry, we must protect our residents when corporate media monopolies threaten to upend the industry by raising prices and reducing content choices," said Davenport at the time.

"The proposed merger between Paramount and Warner Bros. Discovery will hurt our state’s residents, plain and simple," she continued. "We will always stand up against corporate monopolists that seek to exploit hardworking New Jerseyans by driving up prices and turning a massive profit at their expense."

Seth Schachner, managing director of Strat Americas and former chairman of Florida's Film & Entertainment Advisory Council, told Fox News Digital that у законодателей есть обоснованный аргумент.

"These lawmakers have a legitimate argument, as no one really benefits from extensive legal delays over a merger that could still go forward, albeit with asset sales," he said. "The states' legal case is a bit limited though, as it ignores the broader competitive reality that all locales — including New Jersey — are operating in with respect to film and TV production, as streamers like Netflix are essential parts of the case."

Он также сказал, что законодатели "not unbiased here", поскольку они поддерживают обязательства Paramount по проекту 1888 Studios в Бэйонне.

По сообщениям, представители Paramount-Skydance и офиса генерального прокурора Калифорнии Робa Бонты должны были встретиться на прошлой неделе, чтобы обсудить возможное урегулирование иска, направленного на блокирование приобретения Warner Bros. Discovery за $110 млрд компанией Paramount.