Mergers: Commission approves acquisition of Teva’s over the counter business by Procter & Gamble

Brussels, 13-11-2012 — /europawire.eu/ — The European Commission has cleared under the EU Merger Regulation the proposed acquisition of over-the-counter (OTC) business of the generic pharmaceutical company Teva of Israel by the US company Procter & Gamble (P&G). The Commission concluded that the transaction would not raise competition concerns because it would not significantly alter the market structure.

The Commission’s examination of the proposed transaction focused on topical antirheumatics and analgesics and expectorants, in particular in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. The Commission found that in all these markets the combined market shares of the parties remain relatively low and P&G would continue to face sufficient competitive constraints exerted by other companies in the affected markets.

The Commission last examined the affected markets in October 2011, when Teva acquired Cephalon’s then existing OTC business (see case M.6258). The competitive conditions in these markets have not materially changed since then.

As a result, the Commission concluded that the transaction would not significantly impede effective competition in the European Economic Area1 (EEA) or any substantial part of it.

The transaction was notified to the Commission on 9 October 2012.

Companies and products

P&G is the parent company of an international group active in a wide range of consumer products, including consumer health. Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Limited is an international pharmaceutical company headquartered in Israel with a wide portfolio of generics and a limited number or originator pharmaceuticals. Teva’s initial OTC business was already acquired by P&G in 2011 (see case M.6280). The present transaction concerns the OTC products that Teva acquired from Cephalon in 2011 (see case M.6258) that are now being transferred to P&G.

Merger control rules and procedures

The Commission has the duty to assess mergers and acquisitions involving companies with a turnover above certain thresholds (see Article 1 of the Merger Regulation) and to prevent concentrations that would significantly impede effective competition in the EEA or any substantial part of it.

The vast majority of notified mergers do not pose competition problems and are cleared after a routine review. From the moment a transaction is notified, the Commission generally has a total of 25 working days to decide whether to grant approval (Phase I) or to start an in-depth investigation (Phase II).

More information on the case is available at:

http://ec.europa.eu/competition/elojade/isef/case_details.cfm?proc_code=2_M_6705