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UK: Trinity Mirror deal for Express and Star faces competition scrutiny

By  |  April 11, 2018

The UK’s competition watchdog is launching an investigation into Trinity Mirror’s deal to buy a string of titles from Richard Desmond’s media empire.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) announced it will weigh up whether Trinity’s purchase of the brands, such as the Daily Express and the Daily Star, will substantially lessen competition in the UK media industry.

Trinity Mirror last month noted that the watchdog was looking into the merger, saying it believed “there would be no reduction in media plurality as a result of the acquisition”. But on Wednesday, April 11, the CMA said it had launched an initial investigation to “assess whether this deal could significantly reduce competition within the UK media sector”.

The regulagor will make a decision whether to launch a full investigation by June 7. The CMA has also flagged the inquiry to the department for digital, culture, media and sport, indicating that there may be public interest considerations to be taken into account.

Full Content: Financial Times

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