EC Oks Pearson, CLT-Ufa deal

Commission deems union 'will not significantly reduce competition'

By ANDY STERN

BRUSSELS -- The European Commission's deal-busting reputation has been cemented in recent days by its action against telcos WorldCom and Sprint and its probes into the AOL/Time Warner and Warner Music/EMI mergers.

But CLT-Ufa and Pearson TV execs can now breathe a huge sigh of relief. The commission has waved through the acquisition of Pearson TV by Bertelsmann and Groupe Bruxelles Lambert, which control CLT-Ufa.

While the complicated cross-border deal will create one of Europe's most powerful broadcasters, the commission found that it "will not significantly reduce competition."

The EC has also cleared Telecom Italia and News Corp.'s acquisition of joint control over Italian pay TV platform Stream.

Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. and Telecom Italia have each taken 50% stakes in Stream. Brussels said the deal would have "a rather limited impact on the present market structure."

Ironically, the EC's move comes as rumors mount that Telecom Italia wants out of the money-losing company.