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# Evening Scan
- URL: https://adjacent.media/scan/2026-07-21-pm/
- Published: 2026-07-21T23:06:25.000Z
- Updated: 2026-07-21T23:06:26.000Z
- Description: The Paramount-WBD mega-merger hit a wall today, and Sony turned up the legal heat on AI music. Big Tech’s off-balance-sheet math is also getting harder to ignore.
- Author: Jonathan Greene
- Tags: #scan-pm, #scan

The Paramount-WBD mega-merger hit a wall today, and Sony turned up the legal heat on AI music. Big Tech's off-balance-sheet math is also getting harder to ignore.

> **\~$1.65T** — Estimated off-balance-sheet debt now carried by Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and Oracle combined, up roughly 8x since 2022, eclipsing their on-balance-sheet borrowing. *(Nikkei Asia)*

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#### [Judge Halts Paramount's $111B Warner Bros. Merger](https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/07/judge-halts-paramounts-111b-purchase-of-warner-bros-in-win-for-us-states/?ref=adjacent.media)

A dozen state AGs got their temporary restraining order, putting the biggest media deal in years on ice before it could close. *(Ars Technica)*

#### [Sony Files Second Copyright Suit Against Udio — 30,117 Songs](https://www.musicbusinessworldwide.com/sony-music-files-new-lawsuit-against-ai-platform-udio-asserting-over-30000-sound-recordings-a-judge-barred-it-from-adding-to-its-original-case/?ref=adjacent.media)

A judge blocked Sony from adding these claims to the original case, so they filed a new one — a tactic indicating this fight will extend well beyond the initial ruling. *(Music Business Worldwide)*

#### [Europe Fines AliExpress €550M for Selling Dodgy Goods](https://www.theregister.com/legal/2026/07/21/europe-slaps-aliexpress-with-550-million-fine-for-selling-dodgy-goods/5275428?ref=adjacent.media)

The largest DSA fine on record. Brussels is explicitly trying to break the business model, not just clip the margins. *(The Register)*