SEAT PRIVATIZATION (Start of the investigation)
PRESS RELEASE
The Italian Competition Authority decided not to start an inquiry into the acquisition of Seat (a Stet Group company dealing with directory publishing and marketing) by the investors led by Comit, Telecom and De Agostini.
At the same time, certain contracts signed between Telecom and Seat on directory publishing, marketing of Yellow Pages advertising and selling of subscribers data base to Seat, were not considered as restrictive of competition.
The Authority decided to initiate an investigation into other contracts between Telecom and Seat, having regard to the following aspects:
a) the distribution by Telecom of Seat Yellow Pages with telephone directories;
b) the opportunity of Seat to insert advertising leaflets into telephone directories when shrinkwrapping;
c) the obligation on Telecom to classify some data on telephone subscribers by Seat index.
The above contracts are alleged to give Seat a competitive advantage over competitors in the telephone directory sector. In fact, on the one hand, Seat would be allowed to avail of Telecom's capillary distribution and market penetration to distribute its Yellow Pages; on the other hand, Seat could use a service offered by Telecom relating to the classification of business clients by a specific index created by Seat.
On the basis of the above considerations, the Authority deemed that such contracts could be regarded as agreements having as their object or effect appreciable restriction of competition within the national market, in violation of Section 2 of Law no. 287/90.