PARIS (Reuters) – The competition authority has conditionally authorized the acquisition of the media branch of the Altice group by CMA CGM, it announced in a press release on Friday.
In March, the Marseille-based maritime transport group CMA CGM announced the signing of a promise to purchase with the Altice France group with a view to acquiring the entire capital of Altice Media, the parent company of BFMTV and RMC.
Altice Media also owns the titles La Provence, Corse Matin, La Tribune and La Tribune du Dimanche.
“If the investigation allowed the Authority to rule out the possibility of anti-competitive risks on the majority of markets concerned by the operation, a risk of eviction was identified at the local level,” notes the Authority of the competition, highlighting a concentration between the “BFM PACA” and Provence channels.
“In order to remedy the risks of harm to competition identified by the Authority, CMA CGM has entered into behavioral commitments for a period of five years,” she adds.
The commitments relate in particular to the absence of any coupling practice in the sale of advertising space between the “BFM PACA” channels and Provence, and the maintenance of separate advertising agencies.
In a separate press release, the Audiovisual and Digital Communication Regulatory Authority (Arcom) also announced on Friday that it had given its approval to the acquisition of Altice Media by CMA CGM “in view of the commitments made by the purchaser”.
(Written by Blandine Hénault, edited by Tangi Salaün)
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