Mergers in the media sector: Business as usual

The Evolution of European Competition Law: Whose Regulation, Which Competition?

Volumn , Issue , 2006, Pages 170-190

  Idot, Laurence ^a  

^a UNIVERSITÉ PARIS 1 PANTHÉON SORBONNE   (France)

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EID: 34547120428     PISSN: None     EISSN: None     Source Type: Book    
DOI: None     Document Type: Chapter

References (82)

1. European Parliament 339.618 DEF, 5 April 2004.
2. On this point, see also the approach used by economists and the comparative study of media mergers carried out by the Competition Committee of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), 'Mergers in the Media'Volume 5, OECD Journal of Competition Law and Policy [2003], number 4, pp. 79-193
3. H. Ungerer Legal and Regulatory Aspects of Public Service Broadcasting, 19-20 September 2003, Bucharest.
4. Constitutional Council, decision number 86-217, 18 September 1986.
5. It appears that France was a pioneer in this matter, at least insofar as audiovisual media are concerned.
6. For an overview, see H. Ungerer Legal framework to secure open Media Markets and the Independence of the Press - The Role of EU Competition Law, Opole
7. June 2004Application of EU Competition Rules to Broadcasting - The Transition from Analogue to Digital, Naples, 20 September 2004.
8. Council Directive 89/552/EEC, first Council directive of 3 October 1989 on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by Law, Regulation or Administrative Action in Member States concerning the pursuit of television broadcasting activities, OJ 1989 L298, as amended, OJ 1997 L202.
9. H. Ungerer Impact of Competition Law on Media - some comments on current developments, Brussels, 10 December 2003. See European Commission document The Future of European Regulatory Audiovisual Policy, COM (2003) 784, 15 December 2003.
10. I. Pingel, 'Audiovisuel', J. Clas. Europe, Fasc. 1220
11. M. Pereira, 'Scope and Duration of media rights agreements: balancing contractual rights and competition law concerns', presentation made in Brussels, 10 October 2003
12. Case 243/83, SA Binon & Cie v SA Agence et messageries de la presse, judgment of the Court of Justice of 3 July 1985, [1985] ECR 2015.
13. Case 7/97, Oscar Bronner GmbH v Mediaprint, judgment of the Court of Justice of 26 November 1998, [1998] ECR I-7817.
14. See, for instance, CEDECE (Commission for the Study of the European Union/Commission pour l'étude des communautés européennes), 'Service public et Communauté européenne: entre l'intérêt général et le marché', Strasbourg, October1996, under the direction of R. Kovar and D. Simon, Paris, La documentation française, 1998
15. G. Chatillon, M. Juhan, J.L. Piotraut, M.F. Christophe 1, p. 337seq.
16. Commission Decision 1999/242/EC of 3 March, TPS, Case IV/36.237, OJ 1999 L90. Handed down prior to the reform implemented by Regulation 1310/97, this joint venture was examined pursuant to Regulation 17/62
17. H. Ungerer 'Competition policy and the issue of access in broadcasting markets: the Commission perspective', presentation made in Brussels, 14 January 2003
18. 'Il est frappant de constater que la Cour de Justice des Communautés européennes, lorsqu'elle applique un droit économique, parle de 'consommateur' et non de 'téléspectateur'. Toute la différence entre le respect du pluralisme et le libre jeude la concurrence se résout dans cette différence sémantique. A un droit de nature économique (. . .) le droit de l'audiovisuel emporte des particularités liées soit à une problématique culturelle, soit à la sauvegarde du pluralisme.' Cited by the Competition Council in its notice (avis) 03-A-08 of 26 May 2003 in relation to a request for the additional notification of the French Minister of Culture and Communication (ministre de la culture et de la communication) and the French Deputy Minister of Industry (ministre déléguée à l'industrie) concerning a bill on electronic communications, Report to the Council (rapport du Conseil) for 2003, available on the internet, .
19. On this point see also L. Vogel, 'Pluralisme culturel et contrôle des structures', presentation made at the competition workshop on 'Culture et concurrence', 10 October 2001, published in 124 Revue Concurrence et Consommation 26 (November-December 2001
20. It shouldn't be overlooked that the 7th reform of the German competition act (GWB) made necessary by Regulation 1/2003 is currently delayed due to a heated debate on the regime that should be applied to mergers in the press sector
21. V.U. Immenga, 'Pressemärkte in der Wettbewerbs und Medienpolitik' ZWeR, 2004 pp. 329-54
22. Constitutional Council decision number 86-217 of 18 September 1986 in relation to the 'Freedom of Communications' (liberté de communication) law.
23. J-M. Cot, J.P. de la Laurencie, Le contrôle français des concentrations, Paris, LGDJ collection droit des affaires, 2nd edn, 2003, numbers 31-34
24. D. Brault, Politique et pratique du droit de la concurrence en France, Paris, LGDJ, collection droit des affaires, numbers 198-202
25. D. Ferrier, D. Ferré, Droit du contrôle national des concentrations', Paris, Dalloz référence, 2004, number 12, p. 36
26. Law number 86-1067 of 30 September 1986 in respect of the freedom of communication; refer to the consolidated text, as amended, on the CSA (Conseil Supérieur de l'Audiovisuel) website.
27. Law number 2004-669 of 9 July 2004 relating to electronic and audiovisual communications services, Official Journal of the French Republic (Journal Officiel de la République Française or JORF), number 159, 10 July 2004.
28. Law number 86-1067, article 39-I.
29. Law number 86-1067, article 39-II and 39-III.
30. Law number 86-1067, article 41.
31. Law number 86-1067, article 41-1 and 41-2 for analogue television; article 41-1-1 and 41-2-1 for digital television.
32. Notice of the Competition Commission on 2 October 1986, selective price cuts in the daily local informational periodical sector, Commission report for 1986 (Rapport de la Commission pour l'année 1986
33. H.P. Nehl, Europäische Pressemärkte im Lichte des EG-Wettbewerbsrechts, 1 February 2002, which cites German, Austrian and British decisions.
34. New article 41-4 of law number 86-1067.
35. L. Idot 'Les autorités de contrôle et de régulation', in La concurrence dans la société de l'information, PU Paris II, 2002, pp. 33-48
36. Law number 2000-719 of 1 August 2000, amending article 41-4 of the 1986 law. The law made it compulsory to notify the Competition Council, whereas in the case of French control only those operations posing competitive problems resulted in such filings. The Minister of the Economy, who retains the power of decision, also had a monopoly over the choice to send an operation to phase II.
37. NRJ/RMC case, letter dated 10 February 2001
38. M6/TF1/TPS+TPS gestion case, letter dated 12 September 2002.
39. Refer to Commission Decision of 20 April 1999, Financial Times/Gruner + Jahr, Case IV/M.1455, OJ 1999 C80/5 for a joint venture concerning the Financial Times in Germany; the aborted legal publishing merger between ReedElsevier and Wolters Kluwer (Commission Press Release IP/98/230 of 10 March 1998).
40. In the Commission Decision 96/346/EC of 20 September 1995, RTL/Veronica/Endemol, Case IV/M.553, OJ 1996 L134/32, and on appeal, Case T- 221/95, Endemol Entertainment Holding BV v Commission, judgment of the Court of First Instance of 28 April 1999, [1999] ECR II-1299.
41. These figures should be regarded with caution: the M.469 MSG Media Service case, which resulted in the first decision blocking a merger in the sector, does not appear in this list.
42. Commission Decision of 13 September 2000, Vivendi/Canal+/Seagram, Case COMP/M.2050.
43. Six, if the Commission Decision of 28 June 2000, MCI/Worldcom/Sprint, Case COMP/M.1741 case is included.
44. Commission Decision 94/922/EC of 9 November 1994, MSG Media Services, Case IV/M.469, OJ 1994 L364/01; Commission Decision 96/177/EC of 19 July 1995, Nordic Satellite Distribution, Case IV/M.490, OJ 1996 L53/20
45. Commission Decision 99/153/EC of 27 May 1998, Bertelsmann/Kirch/ Première, Case IV/M.993, OJ 1999 L53/1.
46. Commission Decision 99/154/EC of 27 May 1998, Deutsche Telekom/ BetaResearch, Case COMP/M.1027, OJ 1999 L53/31.
47. For an overview of the policies now applicable, see J.P. Gunther, 'La politique communautaire de l'audiovisuel: état des lieux', RTDeur., 1998.1.
48. Commission Decision 2003/790/EC of 28 June 2000, MCI WorldCom/Sprint, Case COMP/M.1741, OJ 2003 L300.
49. Commission Decision 2004/422/EC of 7 January 2004, Lagardère/ Natexis/VUP, Case COMP/M.2978, OJ 2004 L125/54.
50. Commission Decision 2004/311/EC of 2 April 2003, Newscorp/Telepiù, Case COMP/M.2876, OJ 2004 L110.
51. Also refer to the Commission Decision 1999/287/EC of 8 July 1998, Worldcom/MCI, Case IV/M.1069, OJ 1999 L116/1
52. Commission Decision 2001/718/EC of 11 October 2000, AOL/Time Warner, Case COMP/M.1845, OJ 2001 L268/28.
53. See, most notably, the Minister's letter of 4 August 1993, société générale occidentale - société d'exploitation de l'hebdomadaire Le Point, notice of the Competition Council, 93-A-13 (BOCCRF, 10 September 1993)
54. Minister's letter of 30 November 1994, Emap International magazines-Editions mondiales-Editions périodiques (BOCCRF, 9 December 1994)
55. Minister's letter of 2 September 1999, Pathé- Vivendi (BOCCRF, 14 October 1999).
56. Refer in particular to the Minister's letter of 12 December 2002, TF1/M6/TPS (BOCCRF, 31 March 2003)
57. Minister's letter of 31 December 2002 relating to a merger in the written press sector (BOCCRF, 30 September 2004)
58. Minister's letter dated 26 April 2004 relating to a merger in the pay TV sector
59. Minister's letter of 27 October 2004 relating to a merger in the audiovisual sector (available on the website of the French Ministry of the Economy (Ministère de l'économie), www.minefi.gouv.fr). In the press sector, there exist other decisions, outside those concerning general newspapers, which are subject to a specific regime, refer to the letters of 29 April 2003, merger in free press sector (BOCCRF, 5 December 2003), and of 11 February 2004 (BOCCRF, 15 June 2004).
60. For a review of this principle, refer for example to H. Ungerer 'Application of EU Competition Rules to Broadcasting - The Transition from Analogue to Digital', presentation made in Naples, 20 September 2004.
61. Green Paper, COM (92) 480, 23 December 1992.
62. For example, the German authorities requested a referral in the decision to reject the MSG Média Service merger (Commission Decision 94/922/EC of 9 November 1994, MSG Media Service, Case IV/M.469, OJ 1994 L364/1), and this request was refused.
63. Commission Press Release IP/02/1216 of 16 August 2002. Commission Decision of 14 August 2002, Sogecable/Canalsatélite/Via Digital, Case COMP/M. 2845
64. On the final decision made by the Spanish authorities, decision of the Council of Ministers dated 29 November 2002 (N-280), www.mineco.es/dgdc/sdc.
65. Joined cases T-346/02 and T-347/02, Cableuropa and Others v Commission, judgment of the Court of First Instance of 30 September 2003, OJ 2003 C17, note L. Idot.
66. For French language comments, refer to 'Le nouveau règlement CE sur les concentrations', Europe, March, 2004
67. F. Brunet 'La double réforme du contrôle communautaire des concentrations', RTDeur., 2004/1, pages 1-3
68. J.M. Cot 'Le nouveau contrôle des concentration: plus de transparence contre plus de pouvoirs pour la Commission', Revue Lamy Droit des Affaires, 2004
69. Case C-42/01, Portugal v Commission, judgment of the Court of Justice of 22 June 2004, OJ 2004 201/01, note L. Idot, Concurrences, 2004/1, obs. S. Martin, pages 72-3.
70. This issue was particularly relevant for the Vivendi group after the acquisition of Universal. The matter was put to the French Council of State (Conseil d'état).
71. L. Idot, 'La notion d'entreprise révélateur de l'ordre concurrentiel', in L'ordre concurrentiel, Mélanges en l'honneur d' A. Pirovano, Paris: Frison-Roche, 2003, pp. 523-46
72. Aside from sensu stricto decisions in respect of mergers, a relatively complete analysis of markets appears in the ruling founded on Article 81 EC and relating to the TPS joint venture (OJ 1999 L90). For an overview of related legal doctrine, refer to J.B. Blaise 'L'accès aux marchés', in La concurrence dans la société de l'information, PU Paris II, 2002, pages 19-32
73. R. Saint-Esteben 'Les opérateurs du marché: rapprochements, concentrations', idem, pages 89-93
74. More recently, N.Th. Nikolinakos 'Mergers and Strategic Alliances in the Emerging Multi-Media Sector: The EU Competition Policy', [2004] ECLR, issue 10, pp. 625-37.
75. Already in 2000, see 'Réglementation et concurrence dans le secteur audiovisuel dans une perspective de convergence', OECD review droit et politique de la concurrence, volume 2/number 3, page 7 et seq.
76. Directives 2002/21/EC and 2002/19/EC of the European Parliament and Council, (respectively 'Framework Directive' (directive cadre) and 'Access Directive' (directive accès)), respectively OJ 2002 L108/33 and OJ 2002 L108/7.
77. Commission Decision of 2 August 1994, Kirch/Richemont/Telepiù, Case IV/M.410, OJ 1994 C225/4
78. Commission Decision of 5 May 1995, Kirch/Richemont/ Multichoice/Telepiù, Case IV/M.584, OJ 1995 C129/7
79. Commission Decision, Bertelsmann/CLT, Case IV/M.779, OJ 1996 C364/3.
80. Also in respect of this case refer to J.F. Pons 'La politique européenne de concurrence dans le secteur de l'audiovisuel', Brussels, 15 November 2001.
81. Commission Decision of 23 July 2003, Joint selling of the commercial rights of the UEFA Champions League, Case COMP/C.2-37.398, OJ 2003 L291/25. And, for a presentation of these cases, M. Pereira 'Scope and Duration of media rights agreements: balancing contractual rights and competition law concerns', presentation made in Brussels, 10 October 2003.
82. CFI of 30 September 2003, Case T-158/00, ARD v Commission, ECR 2003 II (not yet officially reported) see Europe 2003(12) 401, note L. Idot.