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EU: EC to decide on Vodafone, Liberty Global’s Dutch deal by July 19

 |  June 15, 2016

European Union antitrust regulators will rule by July 19 whether to clear a plan by British mobile operator Vodafone and U.S. cable company Liberty Global to merge their Dutch operations.

The companies sought approval from the European Commission on Tuesday, according to a filing on the EU competition authority website.

The Commission can either approve the deal with or without conditions in the preliminary phase or open a full-scale investigation if it has serious concerns the tie-up may lead to higher consumer bills.

The combined company would be the second largest telecoms provider in the Netherlands after former incumbent KPN. The industry has seen a wave of consolidation in recent years as companies seek scale in order to invest in costly fast-speed network infrastructure.

Full Content: Reuters

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