Paramount scraps $2.2bn sale of Simon & Schuster publishing to Penguin

The author Stephen King testified at a trial in Washington that the proposed merger would reduce competition and therefore negatively affect writers. Photograph: Patrick Semansky/AP

Penguin Random House, the world’s largest book publisher, and rival Simon & Schuster have scrapped a $2.2bn deal to merge, Penguin’s owner said in a statement on Monday.

Bertelsmann, a German media group which owns Penguin, initially said it would appeal a US judge’s decision that said its purchase of Simon & Schuster would be illegal because it would hit authors’ pay.