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The EU competition regulator said in a
statement that Disney had committed to divest its interests in
channels including History and Lifetime in the European Economic
Area (EEA) to avoid harming competition following its purchase
from Fox.
"The decision is conditional on full compliance with commitments
offered by Disney," the Commission said.
The channels it must end its interest in are History, H2, Crime
& Investigation, Blaze and Lifetime channels -- currently
controlled by A+E Television Networks, a joint venture between
Disney and Hearst. <HRSTV.UL>
Disney secured approval from the U.S. Justice Department for the
deal in June on condition after agreeing to sell Fox's 22
regional sports networks.
The deal would expand Disney's unrivalled portfolio of some of
the world's most popular characters, uniting Mickey Mouse, Luke
Skywalker and Marvel superheroes with Fox's X-Men, "Avatar" and
"The Simpsons" franchises.
Disney owns ABC, ESPN, Pixar, Marvel Studios and "Star Wars"
producer Lucasfilm, plus an array of theme parks. The Fox assets
being acquired include a cable group with FX Networks, National
Geographic and 300-plus international channels, plus Fox's stake
in Hulu.
(In this story the Commission corrects statement to say that
channels are controlled, not owned, by A+E and that A+E is not a
channel)
(Reporting by Alastair Macdonald; Editing by Adrian Croft)
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