PARIS (Reuters) – The European Commission announced on Wednesday the opening of an in-depth investigation into the proposed takeover of Lagardère by Vivendi.
In a press release, the European executive explains that its preliminary investigation “indicates that the transaction is likely to significantly reduce competition in the markets for the purchase of copyright associated with French-language books, the distribution and marketing of French-language books and the sale of French-language books to retailers”.
The European Commission also points out that it has “identified competition problems with regard to the sale of ‘people’ magazines”.
The proposed transaction would result in the merger of the two leading French publishing houses, Hachette (Lagardère) and Editis (Vivendi). It is denounced by competitors like Gallimard.
In order to resolve European competition concerns, Vivendi announced last July that it was considering a spin-off from Editis in its entirety.
The French media giant, in which billionaire Vincent Bolloré holds 29% of the capital, explained that the proposed sale of Editis would be done via a distribution to shareholders and a listing on Euronext Paris.
Vivendi already owns 57% of the capital of Lagardère, but its voting rights are capped until the merger gets the green light from the competition authorities.
(Mattieu Protard and Nicolas Delame)
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