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Spain: Commission suspicious of Telefonica/Canal Plus merger

By  |  November 27, 2014

The European Commission is not convinced that an acquisition of Canal Plus by Telefonica will not harm competition in Spain’s pay-TV industry, say reports.

The merger would create a single pay-TV company with more than 80 percent of the market. Reports say the concerns were outlined by the Commission and sent to Spain’s competition authority the CNMC, which is investigating the transaction.

Media conglomerate Prisa agreed to sell its 56 percent stake in Canal Plus to Telefonica last May; the acquisition would put Telefonica at the number-one spot in pay-TV operations in the nation, reports say.

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