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WMG-EMI MERGER
GETS THE FULL MONTI

European Commissioner Mario Monti
Takes A Hard Look At Warner-EMI Merger
This Monti may not be willing to make a deal.

European Union Competition Commissioner Mario Monti let Time Warner and EMI Group execs know that he wasn't going to be a pushover when it came to the proposed merger of the two companies.

Senior execs from the two companies met with the European Commission in Brussels yesterday (9/6) for a hearing at which they hoped to persuade the EC that its fears their union could stifle music industry competition were unfounded. But Monti stressed the commission's dedication toward ensuring mergers in the new economy did not produce such powerful firms that new entrants would be excluded.

"The commission has to guarantee they do not undermine the benefits arising from increased competition and do not put a brake on innovation by giving companies excessively firm control over the new markets," Monti said. "We must avoid anyone gaining control over these new markets as a result of these mergers or concentrations."

But Time Warner and EMI officials left the meeting confident their arguments had prevailed, insisting the commission's concerns were based on a misunderstanding of the way the music industry works.

In what has become a Time Warner mantra on both sides of the Atlantic, a spokesman for the company said, "We are just where we thought we'd be at this juncture. The regulators are raising their issues and we're meeting with them to meet those concerns."

Time Warner faces another day of hearings today (9/7) on its proposed merger with America Online.

Both the AOL-Time Warner and Warner-EMI mergers are facing serious regulatory scrutiny on both sides of the pond; however, industry insiders are still confident neither planned merger is in jeopardy.

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