Paris (AFP)
The Competition Authority validated the "takeover" of the Nice-Matin group by Xavier Niel, she said in a statement on Monday.
The holding company of the founder of Free, NJJ, holds controlling interests in Le Monde and L'Obs, but since this repurchase concerns regional securities (Nice-Matin, Var-Matin, Monaco-Matin, and their websites ), "the operation does not give rise to any overlapping of activity in the written press sector", estimated the Authority.
"On the other hand, the operation gives rise to very limited overlap of activities in the markets for the operation of online editorial sites and the sale of online advertising space", continues the institution. In view of the "differences" between the readership and advertisers of the two groups, the Competition Authority has also ruled out the risk of "tied selling".
Convened by the Franco-Lebanese magnate Iskandar Safa, Nice-Matin has been in the process of being bought out by Xavier Niel since the summer of 2019, which gave him priority.
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