Friends Reunited sale hits a snag

The £25m sale of Friends Reunited has been put on hold after the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) raised concerns about its impact on the genealogy market in the UK.

Brightsolid Group Limited, the company that owns FindMyPast.com and 1911 Census, had been expected to buy Friends Reunited Holdings Limited, which owns Genes Reunited, from ITV as reported by Web User in August.

However, the anticipated acquisition has been referred by the OFT to the Competition Commission because of fears that it will impact on customer choice.

At the moment, the merging firms both compete with the leader in the genealogy market, Ancestry.co.uk.

The merger will reduce the market competition from three major companies to two and the OFT fears that this will see a dip in the range and quality of services available or even increase prices.

The Competition Commission is expected to report by 16 April 2010.

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