Acquirer(s)
- Universal Studios International BV
Target(s)
- Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Inc
Summary
Universal Studios International B.V and Sony Pictures Home Entertainment Inc proposed to form a joint venture for the marketing, sales, distribution and supply of physical home entertainment products in Australia.Market definition
The ACCC considered the proposed merger in the context of the national market for the distribution of physical home entertainment products (DVDs and Blu-ray Discs).The ACCC noted that it may be possible to define separate markets for the distribution of new release and back catalogue titles, or for DVDs and Blu-ray Discs. However it was not necessary to form a definitive view regarding market definition as the proposed merger was unlikely to raise concerns regardless of the market definition applied.
Competition analysis
The ACCC formed the view that the proposed merger was unlikely to substantially lessen competition in the any relevant market. Factors informing this conclusion included:- Retailers (including specialist retailers of physical home entertainment products, mass merchants, supermarkets and rental chains) exercise a considerable degree of countervailing power against distributors of physical home entertainment products.
- The merged entity would continue to compete with several other large distributors of physical home entertainment products including distributors related to major movie studios.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
ACCC commenced review under the Merger Review Process Guidelines. |
|
Closing date for submissions from interested parties. |
|
ACCC announced it would not oppose the proposed joint venture. |