EU court backs regulators, hands Vivendi defeat in Lagardere antitrust case

(Corrects first paragraph to say the case is about EU regulators' investigative powers and not Vivendi breaching EU merger rules.)

By Inti Landauro and Makini Brice

BRUSSELS, June 3 (Reuters) - Vivendi lost its fight against EU antitrust regulators on Wednesday as Europe's second-highest court agreed that they have the power to demand information related to the French publisher's 2023 Lagardere acquisition.

Vivendi had challenged EU Commission' powers to request documents, saying the demands could expose journalists' sources and breach their privacy rights and source-protection rules.

"Since none of the grounds invoked by the applicant are valid, the appeal should be dismissed in its entirety," the Luxembourg-based General Court said.

Vivendi did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The company found itself in the EU regulator's crosshairs after it closed the Lagardere transaction before securing merger approval.

The Commission, which acts as the EU competition enforcer, has yet to issue a final decision on the case which could see Vivendi fined as much as 10% of its global annual revenue if found guilty of breaching EU merger rules against gun-jumping.

The EU executive has in recent years slapped hefty fines as a deterrent on companies for violating merger regulations.

The case is T-1097/23 Vivendi v Commission.

(Reporting by Foo Yun Chee, Inti Landauro and Makini BriceEditing by Bernadette Baum)