Vodafone does not expect the charges filed by three telecom giants against the approval of the takeover of Unitymedia by the European Commission to succeed.
German network operator NetCologne has confirmed it is filing a case in court to challenge the EU's approval of Vodafone's buyout of Unitymedia from Liberty Global, after British court officials, said that it, along with Tele Columbus and Deutsche Telekom, had filed complaints about the court decision.
In an interview with Broadband TV, a Vodafone executive said that in a 15-month procedure, the EU has reviewed the acquisition of Unitymedia by Vodafone through market tests and surveys, among other things.
The merged entities, the Vodafone official said, will spark competition and deliver better and faster broadband and TV services to consumers and businesses. "The approval is good for consumers and the economy in Germany," the Vodafone official disclosed.
But the Cologne-headquartered operator argued that the deal hampered competition and threatens the German government's access to broadband technology, adding that Germany lagged behind nations like Japan, South Korea, and Lithuania in fiber access.
NetCologne, Deutsche Telekom, and Tele Columbus recently filed three lawsuits to declare invalid at the EU Court of Justice the approval of the contentious cable contract by the European Commission. The three telecom players denounce the "re-monopolization of the cable market" would distort market competition.
Managing director Timo von Lepel bared that fiber penetration in cities like Hamburg, Munich, and Cologne had been driven by regional telcos that we're able to compete with Telekom, but that the entry of another telco player put this in peril.
Von Lepel added that Vodafone network's expansion to all 16 federal states also set the stage for a huge imbalance in the broadcast an industry where market influence is focused in one firm that charges "huge feed-in fees."
Based on a report by Medienkorrespondenz on Monday, Tele Columbus and Deutsche Telekom have both complained that the European Union's approval of the consolidation of Unitymedia and Vodafone failed to take a substantial account of the disadvantages that would arise from the broadcast market as a result of the deal's approval.
For instance, Deutsche Telekom said that the merger effectively shut off the opportunity to compete in the real estate market, while Tele Columbus also remarked the European Union had made "procedural mistakes" in its review.
Vodafone dominates the supply of TV and broadcast services to Germany's housing association market, with a share valued at between 75 percent to 80 percent.
