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Liberty Media, the company that owns the rights to Formula One, appears to have received assurances of unconditional approval from the European Union antitrust authority to acquire Dorna Sports, the owner of MotoGP, for 3.5 billion euros ($3.8 billion), Reuters reports.
As you may recall Liberty Media announced the deal to buy 86 percent of MotoGP in April last year. Dorna will retain about 14 percent of its shares, giving the deal an enterprise value of 4.2 billion euros for Dorna/MotoGP and an equity value of 3.5 billion euros.
The European Commission, which acts to ensure respect for competition for the 27 countries, is reported to appear ready to approve the deal without asking for concessions.
Nevertheless, the EU executive, which will decide on the deal by July 1, would not comment.
"There is a very large and growing market for audiovisual entertainment, which goes far beyond sports, and the transaction will improve MotoGP's ability to compete in this highly competitive market," said a Liberty Media spokesman.
Previously, the EU antitrust authority had warned that the deal could raise prices for television rights to motorsport events hosted by both companies.
The investigation also focused on the fact that Liberty Media and U.S. cable company Liberty Global whose largest shareholder, John Malone, has decisive influence over both companies that could push Liberty Media to exclude rival broadcasters in Belgium, Ireland and the Netherlands, where Liberty Global has a presence.
Capitol Forum was the first to report on the impending unconditional EU clearance.
There is another rumor going around that, should authorization still be delayed, a third-party company to Liberty Media could be formed to circumvent any other impediments.
