European Union approves Apple's $3B purchase of Beats

Apple has cleared regulatory approval in Europe for its major $3 billion acquisition of headphone maker Beats.

Today the European Union said Apple’s transaction “did not raise concerns because the combined (headphone) market share of Apple and Beats Electronics is low.” The EU also referenced plenty of other premium headphone makers such as Bose, Sony, Sennheiser, and others as part of its justification for pushing the deal through. (Speaking of Bose, the company recently filed a lawsuit against Beats for infringing on a patent involved with its noise-canceling headphone technology.)

And while Apple’s transaction also included Beats’ streaming music service Beats Music, the EU wasn’t concerned with it since neither Beats Music or Apple’s iTunes Radio operates within Europe currently.

Apple has yet to reach regulatory approval for its purchase of Beats here in the U.S., but the company expects to get it in the near future.

via Engadget