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EU: Commission formally objects to Telefonica’s Germany bid

By  |  February 27, 2014

The European Commission has sent a statement of objections to Spanish telco Telefonica over its plans to acquire Germany’s E-Plus in an $11.7 billion deal.

Reports say the Commission sent a confidential letter that outlines its competition concerns regarding the merger that would consolidate Germany’s wireless industry.

Telefonica first inked a deal to acquire E-Plus from Netherlands-based Royal KPN last August. Telefonica already has its own Germany operations and the merger in question would consolidate those two companies.

Now, Telefonica, which said it expected some concerns from the Commission, will have time to respond to the regulator’s letter.

The Commission’s review of the controversial merger sparked a jurisdictional disagreement with German regulators, who fought and ultimately lost in efforts to take over the merger review.

Full Content: ABC News

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