WELLINGTON, Aug 22 (Reuters) - New Zealand's competition regulator said on Monday that it would move back its final decision on the proposed merger between media companies NZME and Fairfax New Zealand to next March.
The decision, which was planned to be made in June or July, would be pushed back to March 15 2017, the Commerce Commission said in an emailed statement.
Australian media companies, APN News & Media (APN) and Fairfax Media Ltd (FXJ) announced in May that they were planning to list APN's New Zealand business, NZME, on the New Zealand stock exchange and merge it with Fairfax's local business.
Fairfax New Zealand owns a series of newspapers and magazines including the Dominion Post. NZME also owns newspapers, including the New Zealand Herald, as well as radio stations. Both also operate several websites.
The Commerce Commission would release a draft determination in November and then consider any issues raised by NZME, Fairfax or others interested in potential merger before making its final decision, the regulator said.
