The European Commission Friday approved the planned sale of AOL’s U.K. Internet access business to Carphone Warehouse Group (CPW) of the United Kingdom. The deal follows recent similar sell-offs in Germany and France.The commission said that its monthlong examination of the proposed transaction showed that in the sectors where the companies’ activities overlap, Internet access services and fixed-line telephony services, the combined entity’s share of the relevant market “would not give rise to competition concerns as the new firm would continue to face effective competitive pressure from other market participants.”The commission is the European Union’s regulatory and executive branch.Time Warner, AOL’s owner, has been retreating from the Internet access business in Europe, where its subscriber numbers are declining. AOL company has about 5.9 million customers for its three European divisions, in the United Kingdom, France and Germany. In September it agreed to sell its German ISP to Telecom Italia for 675 million euros (US$853.5 million) and its French operation to Neuf Cegetel for 288 million euros (US$374 million).CPW is an independent retailer of mobile communications, with more than 1,500 stores in Europe. As well as retailing mobile handsets and mobile connections, CPW is active in the supply of fixed-line telecommunication services to business and residential customers. It also offers narrowband and broadband Internet access services to U.K. and European residential customers. -Paul Meller, IDG News Service (Brussels Bureau)Related Links: AOL ISP Sale to Telecom Italia OK’d by E.U. AOL to Sell German ISP to Telecom Italia for $853M AOL CEO Switch Raises EyebrowsCheck out our CIO News Alerts and Tech Informer pages for more updated news coverage. Related content brandpost Who’s paying your data integration tax? Reducing your data integration tax will get you one step closer to value—let’s start today. By Sandrine Ghosh Jun 05, 2023 4 mins Data Management feature 13 essential skills for accelerating digital transformation IT leaders too often find themselves behind on business-critical transformation efforts due to gaps in the technical, leadership, and business skills necessary to execute and drive change. By Stephanie Overby Jun 05, 2023 12 mins Digital Transformation IT Skills tip 3 things CIOs must do now to accurately hit net-zero targets More than a third of the world’s largest companies are making their net-zero targets public, yet nearly all will fail to hit them if they don’t double the pace of emissions reduction by 2030. This puts leading executives, CIOs in particul By Diana Bersohn and Mauricio Bermudez-Neubauer Jun 05, 2023 5 mins CIO Accenture Emerging Technology case study Merck Life Sciences banks on RPA to streamline regulatory compliance Automated bots assisted in compliance, thereby enabling the company to increase revenue and save precious human hours, freeing up staff for higher-level tasks. By Yashvendra Singh Jun 05, 2023 5 mins Digital Transformation Robotic Process Automation Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe