After more than 40 years of operation, DTVE is closing its doors and our website will no longer be updated daily. Thank you for all of your support.
CMA names investigation group for Fox-Sky deal
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has appointed the investigation group that will put together its report into 21st Century Fox’s planned £18.5 billion (€20.5 billion) takeover of Sky.
Anne Lambert will chair the group. She was appointed panel chair and panel member non-executive director of the CMA in October 2016, having been an inquiry chair since 2014. She is also currently a governor of Portsmouth University and a Trustee of The Woodland Trust.
The other panel members include Sarah Chambers, who has also been a panel member non-executive director of the CMA since October 2016, and is also chair of the applications panel of the Renewable Energy Consumer Code and a member of the Civil Aviation Authority consumer panel.
The other two panel members are John Krumins and Tim Tutton. Krumins is currently a chairman of IT services company Wavex and a non-executive director of corporate services firm Hogg Robinson Group. Tutton also works as a freelance economic adviser on economic and regulatory issues, and is a non-executive director of Bristol Water. Both were appointed to the CMA in 2013.
“We have experience investigating different issues in a wide range of sectors, from publishing to hospitals and even defence,” said Lambert.
“We will use that same evidence-based approach to thoroughly and impartially investigate the proposed takeover of Sky Plc by 21st Century Fox on the public interest grounds of media plurality and a genuine commitment to broadcasting standards.”
Culture secretary Karen Bradley announced last week that she would refer the Fox-Sky deal to the CMA, which will now launch a six-month investigation into the deal.
Afrer the CMA submits its final report Bradley will come to a final decision on whether the merger will proceed, including any conditions that should apply in order for it to do so.