Statement Of Issues Released For Trade Me’s Application To Acquire Homes.co.nz

The Commerce Commission has released a statement of issues relating to Trade Me Limited’s application for clearance to acquire PropertyNZ Limited.

PropertyNZ Limited owns and operates the homes.co.nz website, while Trade Me owns and operates the Trade Me Property website.

The Statement of Issues outlines the Commission’s potential competition issues with the acquisition following its initial investigation. The Statement of Issues is not a final decision and does not mean that the Commission intends to decline or clear the acquisition.

The Commission is seeking submissions from Trade Me, PropertyNZ and other interested parties on the issues raised in the Statement of Issues.

The Statement of Issues can be found on the Commission’s case register.

Submissions can be sent by email to registrar@comcom.govt.nz with the reference ‘TradeMe/Homes’ in the subject line.

Submissions are due by close of business on 10 May 2021, with cross-submissions due by close of business on 17 May 2021.

The Commission is currently scheduled to make a decision on the application by 4 June 2021. However, this date may be extended.

Background

We will give clearance to a proposed merger if we are satisfied that the merger is unlikely to have the effect of substantially lessening competition in a market.

Further information explaining how the Commission assesses a merger application is available on our website.

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