Brussels, 21/10/2011 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 21 October, the European Commission granted clearance to the creation of a joint venture between two French companies, Aéroports de Paris (ADP) and Aelia, a subsidiary of Lagardère Services, active in airport retailing. It decided that the deal would not significantly hamper competition in the European Economic Area (EEA).
The new company will combine the businesses of Duty Free Paris (DFP) and Société de Distribution Aéroportuaire SAS (SDA) as well as the “fashion and accessories” business of Duty Free Associates SAS (DFA) at the Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Paris-Orly airports. The deal involves the purchase by Aelia of The Nuance Group's 50% share in DFP, the remaining 50% being owned by ADP.
The Commission assessed the impact of the transaction on the markets for airport retailing and for the award of concessions for retail services at airports. DFP and DFA are simultaneously present only in the airside area of the Orly-Sud terminal. It found that at the Paris-Orly and Paris-Charles de Gaulle airports, the joint venture partners would continue to face competition from shops operated by other companies. The Commission found that the transaction was unlikely to encourage ADP to foreclose access to retail concessions in order to enable the shops it controls with Aelia to raise prices. (FG/transl.fl)