The Netherlands Authority for Consumer & Markets (ACM) has asked the European Commission for permission to handle the proposed merger between Ziggo, the cable-television operator held by media company Liberty Global, and mobile phone operator Vodafone.
The Dutch regulator said it has asked the EC, which has default authority over the matter automatically due to the size of the companies’ combined sales, to remand it to the ACM.
The European Commission will assess which is the most appropriate authority to conduct the investigation with a decision required by early August.
In February, Vodafone and Liberty Global agreed a deal to combine their operations in the Netherlands. Vodafone is set to invest €1bn ($1.1bn) in the joint venture, which will create the second-largest telco in the country after KPN.
Liberty-owned Ziggo, which is a major broadcaster of sport in the Netherlands, is the largest pay-television service in the country. Ziggo launched a new sports channel, Ziggo Sport, in November. Ziggo was formerly known as Sport1.
Vodafone started talks with Liberty about establishing a joint venture in the Netherlands earlier in February after the two parties failed to agree a broader collaboration last year that would have covered up to seven European countries.