November 05, 2009

By By David Sheppard, Reuters

Britain's Competition Commission extended on Thursday its inquiry into the proposed merger between Live Nation Inc and Ticketmaster Inc, the two most powerful companies in the live music business.

The inquiry has been extended by eight weeks, with the final deadline for the commission's report into the deal between Live Nation, the world's largest concert promoter, and Ticketmaster, the leading ticket seller, now January 19, 2010.

The commission said its provisional findings, which were published on October 8 identifying "a substantial lessening of competition in the market for the primary retailing of tickets for live music events," had received a substantial number of responses, and it needed more time.

"The range of possible remedies is complex, and the group wishes to explore all the possible remedies with both the parties to the merger and third parties," it said.

"As the proposed merger is being investigated by competition authorities in other geographic markets, the CC's guidance also requires the group to consult with relevant competition authorities in other jurisdictions to seek consistency and effectiveness in its approach to remedies."

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