The Antitrust Authority said there were only three players in the branded filtered water bar sector
The Antitrust Authority announced today that it was opposed to the acquisition of Electra Consumer Products' Electra-Bar filtered water bar business by Eden Springs Ltd. (Maayanot Eden) (TASE: MEYD), after hearing both parties arguments for the transaction. Eden Springs sought to buy Electra's business in the field of importing and selling filtered water bars, including their maintenance and the supply of replacement filters. Electra and Eden Springs are direct, close competitors in kitchen-counter filtered water bars, both having entered this area of activity in recent years.
The Antitrust Authority said that there were two types of company in this area: the three brand-name companies, Eden Springs, Electra and Tami 4, which invest heavily in branding and whose business model is based on subscriptions, while the other type is non-branded companies with much lower prices. The Authority found that the non-branded companies did not represent genuine competition for the branded companies, and that allowing the proposed deal would mean that one of the branded competitors would disappear, leading to higher prices.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 31, 2016
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