NewsCorp wins EU approval for BSkyB takeover
The European Commission has unconditionally cleared NewsCorp’s £7.8bn takeover of BSkyB.
The commission concluded that the deal would not “significantly impede effective competition” in Europe.
NewsCorp is trying to buy the 61% of BSkyB it does not already own.
The scope of the commission’s investigation was limited to whether the deal was anti-competitive.
Attention will now turn to Business Secretary Vince Cable. Cable has asked Ofcom, the UK’s broadcasting regulator, to asses whether the deal will adversely affect media plurality. Ofcom will report back in the new year.
There is concern among rivals that NewsCorp, which already owns UK newspapers The Times, The Sunday Times, The News of the World and The Sun, would become too dominant in the marketplace – particularly in the advertising market.
Read the EC’s ruling in full.
