Altice announced that it received European Commission approval for its takeover of PT Portugal. The decision is conditional on Altice selling its existing Portuguese operations, business operator Oni and cable operator Cabovisao. The Commission had concerns that the merger of Portugal's largest operator with Altice's operations would have created a dominant player with insufficient competitive constraint from the remaining players on the market for fixed services, which could have led to higher prices for clients.
The Commission also rejected a request to refer the examination of the acquisition to the Portuguese competition authority, but said it cooperated closely with the local regulator on its decision. Altice agreed the acquisition of PT in December and will pay Brazilian operator Oi EUR 7.4 billion plus up to EUR 500 million based on the company's future revenue.
