Penguin’s £1.9bn merger with US books giant is halted by judge

A federal judge blocked Penguin Random House's proposed purchase of Simon & Schuster

(Picture: AP)

A planned $2.2 billion (£1.9 billion) merger of publishing giants Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster has been halted by a US court ruling.

Federal judge Florence Pan said the merger could substantially lessen competition “in the market for the US publishing rights to anticipated top-selling books.”