Kabel Deutschland has said that it has received the preliminary statement of objection from the German Federal Cartel Office (Bundeskartelamt) on the planned Tele Columbus acquisition.
Kabel Deutschland also said it is “convinced that consumers and competition in Germany would clearly benefit from the proposed acquisition. After the closing of the transaction, 880 thousand households would, for the first time, get access to Kabel Deutschland’s high-speed internet and telephony services.”
Interestingly, the operator also said it would now compete with its colleague cable operator Unitymedia Kabel BW, as Kabel Deutschland would enter the market in the federal states of Hesse and North Rhine-Westphalia and thus “increase competitive choice for consumers and housing associations.”
Kabel Deutschland said it will study the concerns of the Kartelamt “and will examine how the Kartelamt’s concerns can be overcome by appropriate remedies and will submit a proposal accordingly.”
The operator wants to acquire Tele Columbus, which operates nets in Berlin, Dresden, Magdeburg and Potsdam as well as smaller towns across the country, for €618 million.
