=20 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- This article was sent to you by someone who found it on SFGate. The original article can be found on SFGate.com here: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=3D/news/archive/2004/10/11/f= inancial2024EDT0312.DTL --------------------------------------------------------------------- Monday, October 11, 2004 (AP) Australian authorities approve Qantas-Air New Zealand merger after New Zeal= and's rejection (10-11) 17:24 PDT SYDNEY, Australia (AP) -- Australian authorities Tuesday approved a proposed alliance between Qant= as and Air New Zealand -- but the decision came too late for the airlines as the New Zealand High Court last month rejected the tie-up. The Australian ruling likely will not salvage the alliance, which was aimed at allowing the carriers to cooperate on routes between Australia and New Zealand. The deal was effectively killed off by last month's High Court rejection in New Zealand, because it needed approval from authorities in both countries. The Australian Competition Tribunal on Tuesday upheld an appeal by the airlines against a ruling by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) that the tie-up would be anticompetitive. Under the proposed alliance, Qantas was to buy up to 22.5 percent of Air New Zealand for $363 million to enable the companies to cooperate on routes between their nations. Qantas and Air New Zealand said last month that they would not appeal the New Zealand High Court's decision, and said they would abandon their plans for the tie-up in its current form. However, the airlines have said an approval in Australia could allow them to form a modified alliance. The tribunal supported all major aspects of the proposal, including plans to code-share, coordinate sales, marketing, pricing and scheduling, and also approved the plan for Qantas to purchase the stake in Air New Zealand. The tribunal said the alliance would "result, or will be likely to result in a benefit to the public and that benefit will outweigh the detriment to the public constituted by the lessening of competition." ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 2004 AP