After calling a timeout on review of the pending merger of Comcast and NBC Universal to amass additional information, the FCC has put the 180-day review clock back in motion. Meanwhile, the European Union has given the merger its stamp of approval.
The FCC stopped the clock 6/24/10 in order to correct “…certain deficiencies in the respective responses of … Comcast Corporation and NBC Universal…” to a prior FCC request for information. The revised responses were received 7/1/10, and the clock restarted 7/6/10.
If you’re keeping score at home, Media Bureau Chief William T. Lake explained that as a result, 7/13/10 constituted Day 45 on the merger review clock.
The European Commission, on behalf of the European Union, determined that the merger was OK. According to Dow Jones, it said, “The transaction would not significantly impede effective competition” among EU nations where the merged entity would be doing business.
