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Document 52026M12465
Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.12465 – SEARCHLIGHT / PROVIDENCE / CLOSERSTILL) – Candidate case for simplified procedure
Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.12465 – SEARCHLIGHT / PROVIDENCE / CLOSERSTILL) – Candidate case for simplified procedure
Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.12465 – SEARCHLIGHT / PROVIDENCE / CLOSERSTILL) – Candidate case for simplified procedure
PUB/2026/611
OJ C, C/2026/3115, 10.6.2026, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2026/3115/oj (BG, ES, CS, DA, DE, ET, EL, EN, FR, GA, HR, IT, LV, LT, HU, MT, NL, PL, PT, RO, SK, SL, FI, SV)
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Official Journal |
EN C series |
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C/2026/3115 |
10.6.2026 |
Prior notification of a concentration
(Case M.12465 – SEARCHLIGHT / PROVIDENCE / CLOSERSTILL)
Candidate case for simplified procedure
(Text with EEA relevance)
(C/2026/3115)
1.
On 1 June 2026, the Commission received notification of a proposed concentration pursuant to Article 4 of Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 (1).This notification concerns the following undertakings:
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Searchlight Capital Partners, L.P. (‘Searchlight’, USA), |
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Providence Equity Partners L.L.C. (‘Providence’, USA). |
Searchlight and Providence will acquire within the meaning of Article 3(1)(b) and 3(4) of the Merger Regulation joint control of CloserStill Group Limited (‘CloserStill’, UK).
The concentration is accomplished by way of purchase of shares.
2.
The business activities of the undertakings concerned are the following:|
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Searchlight is a global private equity firm, focused on communications, media, business services, industrial services and financial services, operating across North America and Europe, |
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Providence is a global asset manager and a specialist private equity investment firm focused on media, communications and education investments, across North America and Europe. |
3.
The business activities of CloserStill are the following: the organisation of exhibitions and conferences in the (i) Learning and HR, (ii) Transport and Infrastructure, (iii) Technology, and (iv) Healthcare sectors across twelve countries, including in the EU. CloserStill is currently solely controlled by Providence.
4.
On preliminary examination, the Commission finds that the notified transaction could fall within the scope of the Merger Regulation. However, the final decision on this point is reserved.Pursuant to the Commission Notice on a simplified treatment for certain concentrations under Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 on the control of concentrations between undertakings (2) it should be noted that this case is a candidate for treatment under the procedure set out in the Notice.
5.
The Commission invites interested third parties to submit their possible observations on the proposed concentration to the Commission.Observations must reach the Commission not later than 10 days following the date of this publication. The following reference should always be specified:
M.12465 – SEARCHLIGHT / PROVIDENCE / CLOSERSTILL
Observations can be sent to the Commission by email or by post. Please use the contact details below:
Email: COMP-MERGER-REGISTRY@ec.europa.eu
Postal address:
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European Commission |
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Directorate-General for Competition |
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Merger Registry |
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1049 Bruxelles/Brussel |
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BELGIQUE/BELGIË |
(1) OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1 (the ‘Merger Regulation’).
ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2026/3115/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)