Mediahuis and the Belgian Competition Authority (BCA) have reached a settlement in the case concerning the allocation of the newspaper distribution concession for the period 2023–2027. Mediahuis acknowledges that it made a mistake and accepts a fine of €7.8 million because, in the period preceding the allocation, it facilitated – together with other parties – an arrangement that restricted competition, whereby additional newspaper volumes would be transferred from bpost to PPP and PPP subsequently withdrew from further participation in the tender.
Mediahuis emphasises that it acted in good faith, caused no harm to consumers, and was solely seeking to safeguard the quality and continuity of newspaper distribution for its more than 380,000 subscribers.
Under European guidelines, the fine is calculated on the basis of the proportion of turnover or costs directly linked to the infringement. As Mediahuis is the largest publisher, with the most print subscribers and the highest distribution costs, the resulting fine for Mediahuis is the highest. The size of the fine does not, therefore, reflect a greater or lesser degree of guilt compared with the other parties involved.
In determining the fine, the Auditor General took mitigating circumstances into account, as the publishers were not involved in drafting the tender specifications, despite the fact that it was the publishers – and not the government – who were the customers of the distribution services. The Audit Office acknowledges that quality criteria are of fundamental importance and essential to ensuring high-quality delivery. The investigation also showed that the publishers acted out of concern, with the primary aim of monitoring and safeguarding the quality of distribution in the future.
Gert Ysebaert, CEO Mediahuis group: “The conditions of the concession created uncertainty for publishers, who had serious concerns about the operational feasibility should the concession be awarded to a party other than the then-incumbent operator, bpost. For any other contender, it would have been operationally impossible to take over the distribution of 650,000 newspapers across Belgium in a high-quality manner without any transition period. We are therefore satisfied that mitigating circumstances were acknowledged. That said, we recognise that mistakes were made in this process. Over the past three years, we have cooperated fully, transparently and constructively with the BCA’s investigation. The evolution of the concession system has been a complex and challenging matter for all publishers in recent years. With this settlement, we bring the case to a close and can focus again on further optimising newspaper distribution in Flanders.”
The mistake was thoroughly discussed and evaluated within the governing bodies of Mediahuis, leading to the strengthening of internal decision-making processes, with clearly defined responsibilities and additional control mechanisms.
For further information: click here.
