BRUSSELS (Thomson Financial) - The European Commission said it has cleared
the proposed 5.1 bln usd acquisition by Royal Philips Electronics NV of
Respironics Inc.
The commission said it concluded that the operation would not significantly
impede effective competition in the European Economic Area (EEA) or in any
substantial part of it.
The commission said the proposed acquisition would result in some overlaps
in the parties' activities in the markets for light boxes and baby soothers and
create vertical links between, on the one hand, Respironics' OEM capnography
components and Philips' critical care monitors and, on the other hand, between
Philips' critical care monitors and Respironics' ventilation equipment used in
hospitals.
The commission's market investigation confirmed that the proposed
acquisition would be unlikely to raise competition concerns in the light boxes
market, as the combined market share of Philips and Respironics would not exceed
25 pct in any national market.
Regarding the soothers markets where Philips is active, the commission said
the proposed acquisition would only lead to a marginal increment to Philips'
market share.
It said there would be no overlap in the parties' activities if the soothers
market would be split into separate markets for the retail sale of "normal"
soothers and the sale of "specialty" soothers -- for example, soothers for
pre-term babies -- to hospitals, as Philips does not sell "specialty" soothers.
As regards the potential vertical relationships between the parties, the
commission said the proposed acquisition would not give rise to competition
concerns, considering, in particular, the respective market position of the
parties and the presence of a sufficient number of alternatives to the parties'
products on the market.
phil.mccomish@thomson.com
pam/cmr
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