The Bundeskartellamt, Germany's competition authority, has granted approval for Madsack Mediengruppe, based in Hannover, to acquire substantial parts of Nordwest Mediengruppe, located in Oldenburg.

Madsack publishes regional and local daily newspapers, including the 'Hannoversche Allgemeine' and 'Neue Presse' in southeastern Lower Saxony. Nordwest Mediengruppe is known for its publications such as 'Nordwest-Zeitung', 'Anzeiger für Harlingerland', and 'Emder Zeitung' in parts of western Lower Saxony. Both companies are also involved in other business areas like advertising papers, online portals, and mail and package transport.

Andreas Mundt, President of the Bundeskartellamt, stated that the merger poses no competitive concerns as the distribution areas of the newspapers from both groups do not overlap, indicating no competitive relationship.

In mergers involving newspaper publishers, the Bundeskartellamt regularly examines the impact on both readership and advertising markets. The authority assesses whether the merger would significantly impede competition in the affected markets, considering readers' choices, although diversity of opinion is not a specific antitrust evaluation criterion.