topstockalerts
Oct 19, 9:15 PM
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission approved Publicis Groupe’s
$2.2 billion acquisition of LiveRamp, subject to conditions designed to preserve competition in digital advertising. Announced in May at
$38.50 per share, the deal has cleared a key regulatory hurdle.
Under a proposed consent order, Publicis and LiveRamp must provide neutral, nondiscriminatory access to LiveRamp’s independent products and services for five years. They must also establish firewalls preventing Publicis from accessing LiveRamp customers’ data and appoint an independent auditor to monitor compliance.
The FTC had warned that the acquisition could harm competition in media-agency and audience-data services. Regulators were concerned that Publicis could exploit its control of LiveRamp’s data-connectivity platform to disadvantage rival agencies or pressure customers into moving their business to Publicis.
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