BRUSSELS (AFP) - The European Commission said it had approved unconditionally US business software firm Oracle's hostile takeover of rival PeopleSoft.
EU competition commissioner Mario Monti said his concerns had been allayed over the deal, which would leave only two big players in the business software market -- Oracle and Germany's SAP.
"After a detailed probe, the commission has concluded that there is an absence of sufficient evidence of competitive harm," said the EU executive in a statement.
The commission had set itself a deadline of November 9 to adjudicate on the case. But its Italian anti-trust chief is keen to clear his in-tray before leaving office at the end of the month to make way for a new EU executive.
The European Commission launched an in-depth investigation into the deal last November, but has twice been forced to suspend the probe pending further information on the impact the takeover would have on the software market.
The US Justice Department had likewise been concerned about the reduction to only two companies in the market for high-end integrated human resource and financial management software used by big companies and government agencies.
But regulators on both sides of the Atlantic appeared to have swallowed their objections.
10/26/2004 - 16:40 GMT - AFP