Company: LBTYK
Filing Date: 2025-02-18
Form Type: 10-K
Source: 0001570585-25-000021
Chunk: 47

Company: Liberty Global Ltd.
Filing Date: 2025-02-18
Form: 10-K
Item: Item 1
Chunk 47
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 packages in European markets, they are sometimes not permitted to make a subscription to one service, such as cable television, conditional upon a subscription to another service, such as telephony. They may also face restrictions on the degree to which they may discount certain products included in the bundled packages.

We often undergo close regulatory scrutiny from competition authorities, in particular with respect to proposed business combinations that often require clearance from the European Commission or national competition authorities, which can block, impose conditions on or delay an acquisition, disposition or combination, thus possibly hampering our opportunities for growth. Additional scrutiny is imposed under the national foreign direct investment screening regimes in the U.K. and by some E.U. Member States. Such regimes allow national governments to review and impose conditions on certain transactions involving critical infrastructures, including telecommunications. In the event conditions are imposed and we fail to meet them in a timely manner, the relevant authority or governments may impose fines and, if in connection with a transaction, may require restorative measures, such as a disposition of assets or divestiture of operations. 

One such example of potential close regulatory scrutiny is the E.U. Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR). The FSR aims to prevent foreign subsidies from distorting the E.U. internal market. We may be obligated to file notifications for pre-review when participating in mergers and acquisitions transactions or in public tenders. This could bring further regulatory complexity to our transactions, and failure to comply with these obligations could lead to sanctions.

The U.K.’s Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (the DMCCA) will impact merger control, consumer protection, anti-trust rules and digital markets. The DMCCA will enhance the Competition and Market Authority’s (CMA) enforcement powers in respect of anti-trust investigations as well as consumer protections, putting it on a similar footing to the CMA’s anti-trust enforcement powers. The CMA will also be able to designate SMP to firms that possess substantial and entrenched market power in digital activities. The DMCCA intends to introduce new rules on subscription contracts, however, contracts that are regulated by Ofcom are exempt. The VMO2 JV’s subscription contracts are unlikely to be in scope of these rules, since they are already subject to pre-existing Ofcom regulations.

Belgium

Telenet has been found to have SMP in the wholesale broadband and the wholesale television distribution markets, obliging it to (i) provide third-party operators with access to the digital television platform (including basic digital video and analog video) and (ii) make