Norwegian Competition Authority intervenes: Schibsted must sell Nettbil



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This is stated in a press release on Wednesday morning.

– Digital platforms for, among other things, buying and selling are increasingly important for Norwegian consumers. Healthy competition between companies is important, among other things, to ensure the development of new services and the lowest possible prices for consumers. The Competition Authority is of the opinion that the acquisition removes the growing competitive pressure that Nettbil is putting on Finn, competition director Lars Sørgard says in the report.

You must sell to a “suitable independent buyer”

The Norwegian Competition Authority’s decision means that Schibsted must sell its shares in Nettbil to a suitable, independent buyer. The buyer of the shares must be approved by the Norwegian Competition Authority.

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The Authority’s decision may be appealed to the Competition Appeals Board within six weeks.

Schibsted bought Nettbil from competitor Aller Media in December 2019. At that time, the media group, through Finn.no, already had a large position in the used car market in Norway.

Schibsted boss Kristin Skogen Lund.

Schibsted boss Kristin Skogen Lund. (Photo: Gunnar Lier)

– Reduced competition in the market could lead to a poorer offer to consumers, for example through higher prices, reduced quality or weakened innovation, says the director of the audit department, Gjermund Nese in the press release.

Schibsted: the decision is wrong

Atle Lessum, director of communications for Schibsted, says they are disappointed with the decision and believes the decision is wrong.

– Now, of course, we will read the decision well, but we complain.

– This was announced in September. Was the result expected?

– He waited and waited. We have given our allegations and comments to the notification of the decision, we believe that there are good reasons for this sale to take place. We take note of this and follow those processes. You have the right to file a complaint and we will use it.

Schibsted bought Nettbil from competitor Aller Media in December 2019.

Schibsted bought Nettbil from competitor Aller Media in December 2019 (Photo: Fartein Rudjord).

Finn. Does not offer the sale of used cars through classified services, while the Nettbil concept works for the consumer to deliver the car to a NAF station. It is then put up for auction, where dealers can bid on the car through the digital marketplace.(Terms)Copyright Dagens Næringsliv AS and / or our suppliers. We would like you to share our cases via a link, which leads directly to our pages. Copying or other use of all or part of the content can only be done with written permission or as permitted by law. For more terms, see here.

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