The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) says it has launched an investigation in to the proposed sports joint venture that will see BT Sport and Eurosport come together under one roof.
BT and Warner Bros Discovery (WBD) are expecting to combine their UK sports channels by the end of the year.
According to the CMA, it needs to consider “whether it is or may be the case that this transaction if carried into effect, will result in the creation of a relevant merger situation under the merger provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002”. If so, the CMA will check whether the creation of that situation “may be expected to result, in a substantial lessening of competition within any market or markets in the UK for goods or services.”
An initial decision is expected by the end of next month.
Despite the proposed joint venture, the UK’s sports market is fairly well fragmented. Sky Sports, Premier Sports and now Viaplay will be the main competitors of WBD-BT’s sports channels. However, the joint venture will place WBD in a better position to secure some of the UK’s most high-profile sports rights. This could help WBD take a larger chunk of Premier League football rights in future seasons.
BT is fairly relaxed on the matter. A spokesperson for the company noted: “The CMA routinely looks at any proposed joint venture of this sort, so this is a normal part of the process”.