Competition and Regulatory Newsletter

KPN wins bid to overturn European Commission's Liberty/Ziggo approval decision

The General Court recently delivered its judgment in KPN BV v European Commission, finding in favour of KPN in its challenge to the European Commission's October 2014 decision to conditionally approve the acquisition of Ziggo NV by Liberty Global plc. The General Court held that the Commission's decision to clear the merger must be annulled on the basis that it is vitiated on procedural grounds. In particular, it found that the Commission failed to state its reasons in relation to potential vertical effects in the premium pay TV sports channels market. As a result of this annulment, the transaction needs to be re-assessed in the light of current market conditions.

Also in this newsletter

• MOFCOM grants conditional clearance for Agrium/PotashCorp merger
• MOFCOM gives Maersk/Hamburg Süd the green light subject to commitments
• CMA to act as single port of call for leniency applications in regulated sectors
• CMA publishes its response to the UK's national security and infrastructure investment review