Progressive opponents of corporate consolidation are pushing the Biden administration to intervene after Amazon announced Wednesday that it has agreed to acquire the Hollywood film and television studio MGM for nearly $8.5 billion, a deal that critics denounced as harmful to workers, consumers and U.S. democracy.

"In announcing plans to buy MGM, Jeff Bezos placed a big softball on a tee for the Biden administration to knock over the fence," Barry Lynn, executive director of Open Markets Institute, said in a statement. "It should be immediately blocked."

As the Wall Street Journal reported, Amazon's purchase of MGM will net the e-commerce behemoth "a library of over 4,000 films, including iconic franchises such as 'James Bond' and 'Rocky,' and classics such as 'The Silence of the Lambs,' 'Raging Bull,' and '12 Angry Men.'"