21.   The deal requires approval by the cartel office.

22.   The decision by the cartel office is also a blow to Deutsche Telekom, whose head Ron Sommer conceded last week that the deal looked doomed.

23.   German law stipulates that the cartel office must first issue a warning if it plans to block a deal, before announcing a final decision.

24.   In certain circumstances, Berlin can overturn a decision by the cartel office if there are pressing arguments for it to do so.

25.   But that was not enough to cover costs and therefore constituted price-dumping, the cartel office said.

26.   Proposals put forward by both companies to clear the competitive concerns had been insufficient, cartel office president Boege said.

27.   Speaking at a news conference, Montag emphasised that Liberty would try to convince the cartel office to approve the deal by the end of February.

28.   The cartel office said it would hold a news conference on the issue on Thursday.

29.   The cartel office objected to the deal because it believed the move would give E.ON a dominant position in both the energy and gas markets.

30.   The German cartel office had warned Liberty over the deal earlier this month, fearing it would give the US company a dominant position in the German cable market.