Facebook Inc.’s share price up, turns to the EU to review the antitrust aspects of its 19-billion-dollar WhatsApp deal

A person with knowledge of the process said that Facebook Inc. is trying to get an antitrust approval of the European Union for the acquisition of messaging service WhatsApp Inc. According to a person close to the matter, who asked not to be named because the issues are private, the company asked the European Commission to observe and control the antitrust aspects of the purchase, which is estimated to 19 billion dollars.

Mr. Thomas Graf, who is one of the antitrust lawyers working with Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton Llp commented to the companys decision in an interview, which was cited by the Wall Street Journal: “Facebook might prefer to go to the commission than go before several national regulators, which would each ask it for information.”

The move is an attempt of Facebook to avoid antitrust scrutiny by multiple countries in the European Union. Facebook Inc. is given the opportunity to ask the European Commission to handle the case if it faces review in three European Union countries. Such an outcome would be beneficial, due to the fact that a Commission scrutiny would eliminate “surprises” at a later stage.

Such a step comes unexpectedly because Facebooks deal had already been approved in the companys home market and most analysts did not expect it to face control and assessment by the European Commission. The U.S. company is trying to avoid any conflicts with both American and European regulators, which is also why it turns to the Commission. Currently, Facebook is considered the most popular social media service on the territory of the European Union.

The 19 billion-dollar cash-and-stock acquisition of the instant messaging service WhatsApp is considered the largest for Facebook, which is currently the biggest social network company in the world. The deal would also be the most expensive one sealed by an Internet company in a period of more than a decade.

The European Commission refused to make any comments on the process. So did Facebook Inc., which spokesman was not immediately available for comment.

Facebook Inc. was 0.05% up to close at 63.51 dollars per share yesterday, marking a one-year change of +163.53%. According to the information published on CNN Money, the 39 analysts offering 12-month price forecasts for Facebook Inc. have a median target of 80.00, with a high estimate of 90.00 and a low estimate of 60.00. The median estimate represents a +25.96% increase from the last price of 63.51.