In today’s Digest, we cover a judge halting the Paramount-Warner Bros. deal amid an antitrust challenge, Google integrating Local Services Ads into Search, and AliExpress vowing to appeal a €550m EU fine.

Judge halts Paramount-Warner Bros deal

Paramount Skydance's USD$110bn (£86.9bn) bid to acquire Warner Bros Discovery has run into a legal obstacle, after a US judge temporarily blocked the deal following a lawsuit from a coalition of 12 state attorneys general. US District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín issued a 14-day pause on Monday, after hearing arguments from both sides last week.

The coalition, led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, may seek a further pause once that window closes, potentially delaying the merger. The states argue the tie-up would harm competition in three key areas: wide theatrical release distribution, top-grossing film distribution, and basic cable licensing, with knock-on effects for cinemas, cable providers, and audiences alike. 

Google integrates Local Services Ads 

Google is moving its Local Services Ads product into the main Google Ads interface, retiring the standalone LSA dashboard in favour of a new Performance Max campaign type built specifically for pay-per-lead local service businesses. The phased rollout begins in August 2026, starting with a small group of US advertisers in pet care, home services, wellness and education.

Ads will continue to appear solely on Search and Maps, remain keywordless by drawing on data from a business's Google Business Profile, and advertisers will still only pay for valid leads such as calls, messages and bookings rather than clicks. Advertisers will manage campaigns, leads and calls directly within Google Ads instead of a separate LSA dashboard, and any updates made to a Google Business Profile, from new photos to changed business details, will sync to campaigns automatically, cutting down on manual upkeep. 

AliExpress vows to appeal €550m EU fine 

AliExpress, the cross-border shopping platform owned by Alibaba Group, has said it will appeal a €550m (£473m) fine handed down by the European Union on for breaching the Digital Services Act. "We are surprised by the EU decision and disproportionate fine and we disagree," the company said in a statement to the South China Morning Post. They argued the penalty failed to account for the "significant, proactive enhancements" it had already committed to making.