Orange and MasMovil win EU approval for Spanish tie-up

BRUSSELS: French mobile operator Orange and Spain’s MasMovil on Tuesday secured EU antitrust clearance for a merger of their businesses in Spain after agreeing to sell spectrum to strengthen a rival.

The deal has been closely watched by the telecoms industry for clues on whether regulators will ease their tough line on mergers that reduce the number of mobile players from four to three. Telefonica is the biggest telecoms provider in Spain.