The European Commission has rejected an earlier request by the Austrian antitrust regulator, the BWB, to refer the ongoing antitrust investigation into the takeover of Orange Austria by Hutchison.
According to an EC spokesperson the Brussels based…
The European Commission has rejected an earlier request by the Austrian antitrust regulator, the BWB, to refer the ongoing antitrust investigation into the takeover of Orange Austria by Hutchison.
According to an EC spokesperson the Brussels based regulator will continue to deal with the investigation, and the deadline remains unchanged at 27 November.
In late May the BWB, which already reviews the sale of Orange Austria’s no-frills subsidiary YESSS! to Telekom Austria, had asked the EC to refer the separate review of the sale of Orange Austria. Such a request to pass on jurisdiction from the EC to a European Union member state authority can be made if a merger is expected to particularly affect competition within that member state.
Approval of the request is, however, at the discretion of the EC.
Following its initial review the EC decided in late June to open an in-depth investigation into the €1.3bn Hutchison/Orange Austria transaction. The EC cited concerns that the deal might create significant competition problems by removing Orange as a competitor in the retail market for end consumers and on the wholesale market for network access and call origination. The decision came only one day after the BWB had decided to also delay its review of the Yesss! deal.
More recently Hutchison has offered measures to address the concerns raised in Brussels, saying it would allow other operators to use its network on an MVNO basis in the future, and that it is willing to talk to other aspiring new market entrants. Tele2 and UPC are said to be interested to take Hutchison up on the offer.
