On Wednesday 31 May, the European Commission cleared the acquisition by Vivendi of Telecom Italia, on the condition that the latter divests its shares in Persidera.
The French company Vivendi controls a group of companies active on the music, television, cinema, video streaming and video games market. Through its subsidiary Havas, Vivendi is also present in the Italian advertising sector. The French company also owns a minority but significant stake in Mediaset, which is active on the market for the wholesale access to digital terrestrial networks for the broadcast of television channels.
Telecom Italia, for its part, is an Italian company providing voice and data services. It is also active on the market for access to digital terrestrial networks and the broadcast television channels, through its subsidiary Persidera (a joint venture with Gruppo Editoriale L'Espresso).
The Commission's analysis focused on two points. First of all, the institution found that given the minority position of competitors of Mediaset and Persidera on the market for wholesale access to digital terrestrial networks for the broadcast of television channels, Vivendi may have been tempted to increase the prices charged to television channels. This would have had the consequence of making access to the Italian public more expensive for rival companies.
The Commission then considered the possibility of a distortion of competition due to Vivendi's activities in Italy in the advertising, music, television and mobile gaming sector and Telecom Italia's activities in the landline and mobile telecommunications sector. On this point, the institution concluded that the French company would have neither the means nor the motivation to exclude other competitors from the markets in question.
The Commission therefore made its authorisation of the acquisition of the Italian company conditional on the divestment of Telecom Italia's stake in Persidera, which Vivendi has undertaken to do. The institution considers that if this commitment were complied with, the acquisition of Telecom Italia would not be incompatible with the rules of EU law in competition matters. (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau)