The European Commission (EC) has further extended its antitrust review of Telefonica’s planned €8.55bn (US$11.7bn) takeover of German mobile operator E-Plus, setting a new deadline of 3 July.
The deadline was extended by five working days.
The…
The European Commission (EC) has further extended its antitrust review of Telefonica’s planned €8.55bn (US$11.7bn) takeover of German mobile operator E-Plus, setting a new deadline of 3 July.
The deadline was extended by five working days.
The latest extension to the phase II review follows a 10-working-day extension in April and a two-day suspension earlier this month.
A spokesperson for Telefonica Deutschland (O2) described the delay as procedural and described breaks of a few days are normal.
O2 recently submitted an improved remedies package based on feedback from the commission’s first market test and is now said to be in talks with several local MVNOs as part of concessions.
The deal would reduce the number of players in the German mobile market from four to three and, as such, the antitrust review is being closely watched throughout the EU, with many predicting an approval could trigger a wave of consolidation deals.
