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7 January 20202 minute read

DLA Piper gets approval from German Federal Cartel Office for EWE and Telekom Deutschland joint venture

In merger control proceedings, DLA Piper has achieved approval from the German Federal Cartel Office for the establishment of a joint venture between Telekom Deutschland GmbH and the energy and telecommunications company EWE AG. The joint venture, Glasfaser NordWest, is to supply up to 1.5 million households and company sites in parts of Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia and Bremen with fibre to the home (FTTH).

The approval in the merger control proceedings, which is not subject to any obligations or conditions, was preceded by a decision from the German Federal Cartel Office in parallel cartel proceedings in early December 2019. EWE AG was also advised by DLA Piper in this matter. These proceedings were terminated after the competitive concerns of the German Federal Cartel Office could be resolved by commitments given by the parties regarding the scope and manner of the self-supporting expansion, the provision of non-discriminatory access for third parties and the participation of the parties in funding programmes. The approval was notable for the close links formed between the merger control and cartel proceedings.

The DLA Piper antitrust team was led out of the Cologne office by partner Dr Jan Joachim Dreyer and comprised of counsel Dr Enno Ahlenstiel and senior associate Dr Gregor Schroll. Corporate aspects of the transaction were advised by partner Dr Andreas Meyer-Landrut and senior associate Marx Dauth.

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