Decision Nº M/04/038 from Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, 2004-07-19

JurisdictionIreland
PartiesPress Acquisitions,Telegraph Group
Date19 July 2004
Decision Date19 July 2004
StatusPreliminary investigation (Phase 1)
CourtCompetition and Consumer Protection Commission (Ireland)
Decision NumberM/04/038
1
Determination No. M/04/038 of the Competition Authority, dated 19th July 2004,
Notification No. M/04/038 – Proposed acquisition by Press Acquisitions Limited
of Telegraph Group Limited
Introduction
1. On 29th June 2004 the Competition Authority, in accordance with Section 18 (1)
of the Competition Act, 2002 (“the Act”) was notified, on a mandatory basis, of a
proposal whereby Press Acquisitions Limited (“Press Acquisitions”) would
acquire the entire issued share capital of Telegraph Group Limited (“Telegraph
Group”).
The Parties
2. Press Acquisitions is a newly incorporated company that has been established for
the purpose of making this acquisition. It is ultimately controlled by Sir David
Barclay and Sir Frederick Barclay. They control a number of companies, one of
which, The Scotsman Publications Limited, publishes The Scotsman, Scotland on
Sunday and Edinburgh Evening News. Another of their companies, The Business
Publishing Limited, publishes the weekly business newspaper, The Business.
3. Telegraph Group publishes a number of UK titles including The Daily Telegraph,
The Sunday Telegraph, The Weekly Telegraph and The Spectator and Apollo
magazines. Telegraph Group is owned by Hollinger International Inc., a
Delaware corporation, which is a global newspaper publisher with English-
language newspapers in the United States, Britain and Israel. Hollinger
International Inc. is itself majority controlled by Hollinger Inc, which is
incorporated in Canada and listed on the Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver stock
exchanges.
Background
4. Sir David Barclay and Sir Frederick Barclay previously agreed to purchase the
entire issued share capital of Hollinger Inc., the ultimate parent company of
Telegraph Group. This agreement was the subject of an Authority determination
on 20th February 2004. However the offer to purchase was subsequently
withdrawn.1
Analysis
5. There is minimal overlap in the activities of the parties. Both parties’ titles
achieve the vast bulk of their sales in the UK. Scotland on Sunday and The
1 For details, see further addendum to Determination No. M/04/005 dated 20th February 2004, Press
Holdings International Limited/Hollinger.

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