The Commerce Commission has published a Statement of Preliminary Issues relating to the proposed merger of Vodafone and Sky.

The statement of preliminary issues outlines the key competition issues that the Commission currently considers will be important in deciding whether or not to grant clearance to the proposed merger. A copy can be found on the Commission’s Clearances Register.

The Commission invites interested parties to provide comments on the likely competitive effects of the proposed merger. Submissions can be sent by email to registrar@comcom.govt.nz with the reference Vodafone/Sky in the subject line. Any submissions should be received by 28 July 2016.

The Commission has also updated its Clearances Register to reflect the indicative timeframe for its decision on the proposed merger. It has been agreed with Vodafone and Sky that we will make a decision by 11 November 2016. If our investigation does not identify any issues, then we may make an earlier decision.

Background

Sky Network Television Limited is seeking clearance to acquire up to 100% of the assets and/or shares of Vodafone New Zealand Limited. In a separate application, Vodafone Europe B.V. is seeking clearance to acquire up to 51% of the shares in Sky Network Television Limited. While we have received two separate applications for clearance (for the two separate acquisitions), the Commission is considering the applications together.

When considering a proposed merger, the Commission must determine whether the competition that would be lost with the merger would be substantial.

We will give clearance to a proposed merger only if we are satisfied that the merger is unlikely to have the effect of substantially lessening competition in a market.

A fact sheet explaining how the Commission assesses a merger application is available on the clearances page.