The Bundeskartellamt has asked the EC to examine the German segment of Vodafone’s takeover of Liberty Global.
Background: in May 2018, Vodafone announced the acquisition of Liberty Global’s cable networks in Germany, Czech Republic, Hungary, and Romania, in a €18.4bn deal. The deal is now pending approval by the EC.
What’s new? The German competition authority has now asked the EC to obtain at least a partial referral, arguing that the acquisition could lead to considerable changes in the German cable TV and telecommunications sectors. According to the European Merger Regulation, a case for which the EC is initially responsible can, under certain circumstances, be completely or partially referred to one or several Member States.
What’s next? We will need to wait for the EC’s decision on the referral. If it is granted, the deal could face significant delay. A group representing competitive German broadband providers, BREKO, had issued a statement on 7 November asking to block the acquisition, saying it would lead to a “quasi-monopoly”.
