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Netherlands: Dutch poised for merger review feud with EU

By  |  January 31, 2014

Local competition authorities in the Netherlands are reportedly looking to review Liberty Global’s plans to acquire domestic cable giant Ziggo, say reports, as the US cable firm continues a merger spree in the EU.

The Dutch regulator ACM said it intends to review the deal, as opposed to the European Commission conducting the review. Competition concerns arose following Liberty Global’s announcement of the purchase, as Liberty also owns Ziggo competitor UPC.

But analysts say the ACM’s intentions to review the deal could be overruled by EU authorities, sparking a jurisdiction feud similar to that of German regulators looking to review Telefonica’s $11.7 billion buyout of E-Plus; the Commission denied Germany’s request to review the deal earlier last week.

Full Content: Reuters

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