AEG is on course to take over management of Wembley
Arena, giving the firm control of three of the four largest indoor venues in
London.
AEG currently
manage The O2 London, Hammersmith Apollo and holds the contract for concerts in
Hyde Park.
The Wembley deal
was referred to the Competition Commission amid fears that AEG's dominance in
the capital could lead to higher prices.
But regulators
have cleared the deal, subject to feedback from third parties.
The Competition
Commission has concluded that AEG's takeover of the venue, which was run by
Live Nation until last autumn, "will not result in substantial lessening
of competition".
AEG also
operates as a concert promoter, under the name AEG Live (UK) Limited, and owns
ticketing service AXS.com.
Final report
'We have
focused our analysis on how the merger between AEG and Wembley will affect the
ability of their competitors and potential competitors to compete as live venue
operators in the UK," said Martin Cave, deputy chairman of the Competition
Commission.
"We found
that while a promoter may have some influence over venue decision, the final
choice of venue usually lies with the act and their agent. This is based on a
number of quality factors, the main ones being capacity, availability,
appearance, brand and reputation rather than hire price.
"So AEG's
opportunity to increase venue prices would be limited given that other factors
are more important and that any negotiation on price takes place after the
venue has been confirmed."
At present, the
takeover remains provisional. The Commission will publish its final report on 5
September, after hearing from third parties with an interest in the outcome.
Source: BBC
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