European Commission Opens Probe in Essilor-Luxottica Merger

Tuesday, September 26 2017 | 00 h 00 min | News

Antitrust investigators in the European Union have launched a full-scale investigation on Tuesday September 26 into whether the proposed $54 billion merger between Essilor and Luxottica, reported earlier this year, will reduce competition.

Margrethe Vestager, European Competition Commissioner, said, “Half of Europeans wear glasses and almost all of us will need vision correction one day. Therefore we need to carefully assess whether the proposed merger would lead to higher prices or reduced choices for opticians and ultimately consumers.”

The statement issued from the European Commission expressed concerns that “the merged entity may use Luxottica’s powerful brands to convince opticians to buy Essilor lenses and exclude other lens suppliers from the markets, through practices such as bundling or tying.”

The Commission has 90 working days, until February 12, 2018, from the point when they were first notified of the merger to render a decision.

Essilor and Luxottica responded with a statement, saying, “Both companies are confident that Phase II will be completed in a timely manner and will closely cooperate with the European Commission to fully demonstrate the rationale of the proposed combination and the benefits that it will bring to customers, consumers and all the eyewear industry players.”

The statement reaffirmed Essilor and Luxottica’s objective to close the transaction by the end of 2017.

Source: http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-17-3481_en.htm