As expected, the European Commission has reapproved Liberty Global PLC's acquisition of Dutch cable operator Ziggo NV, subject to certain conditions.
Liberty Global offered to remove "clauses in channel carriage agreements that limit broadcasters' ability to offer their channels and content over the internet" and to exclude such clauses in future channel carriage deals for a period of eight years from the decision.
The cable giant also committed to "maintain adequate interconnection capacity through at least three uncongested routes into its Internet network in the Netherlands," also for eight years from the decision date, and to not repurchase the Film1 channel.
Upon Liberty Global meeting the commitments, the commission said it would refrain from raising any further competition concerns.
Earlier in April, Liberty Global re-sent its request to EU antitrust regulators for clearance of its takeover of Ziggo, six months after the European General Court annulled the approval in October 2017, citing procedural reasons — a result of Dutch telecom group KPN NV's appeal to overturn the European Union's initial approval of the 2014 merger between cable rivals Liberty-owned UPC and Ziggo.
In 2015, Sony Corp.'s Sony Pictures Television Networks acquired Dutch premium movie service Film1 from Liberty Global PLC, which offered to sell the unit as a concession to secure regulatory approval for its acquisition of Ziggo.
