No formal offer has been made, but Bertelsmann and EMI executives are believed to have met with European Competition Commission officials shortly after EMI鈥檚 planned merger with Warner Music was abandoned when it looked set to threaten Time Warner鈥檚 merger with AOL.
A Bertelsmann-EMI music deal is unlikely to face as many regulatory hurdles as the EMI-Warner deal. However, it would still have to face the issue that a combination of EMI and Bertelsmann鈥檚 music division, BMG, would dominate the music industry.
The Commission said it would be seeking some creative solutions to this problem.