Foilsiú
Media Mergers
Ó An Roinn Turasóireachta, Cultúir, Ealaíon, Gaeltachta, Spóirt agus Meán
Foilsithe
An t-eolas is déanaí
Teanga: Níl leagan Gaeilge den mhír seo ar fáil.
The current media mergers process is conducted in line with the provisions set out in Part 3A (Media Mergers) of the Competition Act 2002 (as amended) by the Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2014.
Guidelines on Media Mergers were produced to provide clarity and guidance for relevant parties. Additionally, a High Level Summary of the Media Mergers Process , information page on Media Mergers and a Glossary of Terms are available for clarity.
The media mergers team can be contacted at MediaMergers@tcagsm.gov.ie
Under section 28B of the Competition Act 2002, (as amended) (the Act), the parties to a media merger must notify the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media (the Minister) within 10 days of the media merger being cleared by the Consumer and Competition Protection Commission, or in certain circumstances, the European Commission.
The notification and accompanying documentation must provide full details of the case and be submitted in electronic format to MediaMergers@tcagsm.gov.ie
The notification form was updated on 10 April 2024 to reflect the introduction of a Simplified Media Merger Notification Procedure, for certain media mergers. The updated version of the notification form template can be found here.
Media Mergers Notifications Form 2024
Íosluchtaigh nasc le haghaidh
Íoslódáil
féachaint ar an gcomhad
Amharc
In the interests of efficiency and minimising the regulatory burden on parties, this department is happy to participate in pre-notification engagement with the parties, including meeting with the parties and reviewing draft notifications. Parties wishing to avail of the Simplified Procedure must discuss this possibility with the Department in advance of submitting a notification.
In April 2024, the Department introduced a Simplified Media Merger Notification Procedure, with the intention of easing regulatory burden on businesses in instances where the target of a transaction is not active in the State and is, therefore, is unlikely to have an impact on the plurality of media in the State.
The Department may apply a Simplified Media Merger Notification Procedure when the following conditions are met:
- the target undertaking does not carry on a media business in the State and it is not intended that it would do so;
- the target undertaking does not target audiences in the State and it is not intended that it would do so; and
- there is no reason to expect that the transaction may have a direct impact on the activities of any media business that operates in the State.
Mergers under the Simplified Media Merger Notification Procedure are to be notified using the standard Media Merger Notification Form. Parties wishing to avail of the Simplified Media Merger Notification Procedure must discuss this possibility with the Department in advance of submitting a notification.
Following receipt of a notification under the Simplified Media Merger Notification Procedure, the Department will inform the undertakings involved, as soon as practically possible, whether it is appropriate to apply the Simplified Procedure or to revert to the standard procedure. Where the Department decides to proceed under the Simplified Procedure, the Minister will endeavour to make a determination as soon as practically possible.
Once notified, the Minister conducts an initial (Phase 1) examination of the media merger to inform their determination.
The Minister has 30 working days from the relevant date, which is the date that the notification is due by, to make one of three possible determinations:
- that the media merger may be put into effect
- that the media merger may be put into effect with conditions, subject to those conditions having been proposed as commitments by the Parties
- that they intend to request Coimisiún na Meán (CnaM) to conduct a full examination of the proposed merger
In cases where a media merger is examined under the Simplified Procedure, the Minister will endeavour to make a determination as soon as practically possible.
In accordance with section 28D (7) of the Act, the Minister publishes media merger determinations.
Copies of all determinations to date can be found using the link below.