EU Poised to Deliver ‘Warning’ on UMG’s $775M Downtown Acquisition

Europe’s competition watchdog, the European Commission (EC), is reportedly set to issue a ‘formal warning’ over Universal Music Group’s proposed acquisition of Downtown Music Holdings, as per Bloomberg.

What it means:

• The EC is prepping a ‘statement of objections’ to the deal, which will outline its preliminary competition concerns.

• As Bloomberg notes, “most merging companies avoid a veto by addressing competition issues.”

• The statement of objections is reportedly due imminently.

• The EC has until February 6 to reach a final decision on its Phase II investigation into the deal.

IMPALA responds:

• IMPALA, the industry body that represents more than 6,000 members in the European independent music sector across 33 countries, issued a statement in response to news of the warning.

• It says: “We welcome this news and look forward to official confirmation and details of the objections. We will continue to liaise with the European Commission regarding our members’ concerns.”

• Referencing its 100 Voices campaign, IMPALA reiterated its position that the acquisition “should be blocked outright.”