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Viacom-CBS nears close
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April 26, 2000: 6:15 p.m. ET
U.S. Justice Dept. will not stand in way of deal, FCC OK also expected
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - The U.S. Department of Justice on Wednesday gave its blessing to Viacom Inc.'s proposed merger with CBS Corp., an expected move that leaves the deal only one regulatory hurdle away from completion.
Viacom said the Justice Department told both companies that it would not stand in the way of the merger with CBS Corp., a deal announced in September 1999 and currently estimated at roughly $50 billion.
The Federal Communications Commission is expected to approve the deal "imminently," according to the companies, which plan to complete the merger immediately after they get the FCC nod.
 The five FCC commissioners are reportedly looking at a recommendation from commission staff to approve Viacom's (VIA: Research, Estimates) acquisition of CBS (CBS: Research, Estimates), conditioned on certain divestitures needed to comply with federal rules.
Those rules limit the national audience that one company may reach through its owned TV stations at 35 percent. Combined, the two businesses would reach 41 percent of the national audience.
The companies had asked for two years to come into compliance with commission rules, but the staff recommends giving them less time then they had sought, according to reports.
Shares of both companies rose of Wednesday. Shares of Viacom, which on Wednesday also reported strong first quarter earnings, rose 3 to 58-11/16. CBS shares climbed 2-13/16 to 54-9/16. 
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