The Supreme Administrative Court of Lithuania (SAC) has rejected the appeal filed by Estonia’s Piletilevi Group regarding its acquisition of the ticket distributor Tiketa, confirming the validity of the Competition Council’s earlier decision to prohibit the transaction. The ruling upholds the judgment of the Vilnius Regional Administrative Court, which had previously found the Competition Council’s assessment to be lawful and well-grounded.
After reviewing the key factual and legal elements of the case, the SAC concluded that the lower court had correctly identified the circumstances relevant to evaluating the merger. It therefore found no basis to annul or modify the earlier ruling.
In January 2024, the Regional Administrative Court dismissed Piletilevi Group’s complaint and upheld the Competition Council’s June 2022 decision refusing permission for the concentration. The authority had determined that Piletilevi Group’s acquisition of 100% of Tiketa’s shares would create or strengthen a dominant position, or significantly restrict competition, in the Lithuanian market for the distribution of tickets to various events.
The SAC also noted that the factual circumstances arising after the implementation of the transaction, as well as the practical feasibility of restoring the previous competitive situation or eliminating the effects of the merger, will need to be assessed in subsequent proceedings.
The Competition Council had initiated the merger control procedure ex officio, requiring Piletilevi Group to notify the transaction after identifying concerns that the deal could harm competition. At the time, Piletilevi Group controlled Lithuania’s two largest ticket distribution companies: Tiketa (tiketa.lt) and Nacionalinis bilietų platintojas, operator of the bilietai.lt network.