J&J offer concessions to EU in review of Synthes purchase

Johnson & Johnson offered concessions to European Union antitrust regulators who are reviewing its plan to buy Synthes Inc. in a deal valued at about $18.89 billion.

The European Commission extended its deadline to rule on the deal until April 26, it said in a filing on its website today. The regulator didn’t give any details of what concessions J&J offered.

J&J, the world’s second-largest seller of health products, defended its bid to buy Synthes, a maker of medical tools to treat damaged bones, at a Feb. 14 hearing with EU regulators. A hearing usually follows a formal antitrust complaint listing EU concerns that a deal may harm competition.

In November, the Brussels-based regulator opened an expanded probe of the deal, which would make J&J the leader in the $5.5 billion market for devices used to treat trauma victims. The EU said its initial investigation showed that the transaction may trigger an increase in prices for orthopedic medical devices.

J&J’s offer for Synthes is the biggest purchase in the New Brunswick, New Jersey-based company’s 125-year history. A phone call and e-mail Johnson & Johnson’s press office didn’t get an immediate response outside of normal business hours. Gilgian Eisner, a spokesman for West Chester, Pennsylvania-based Synthes, declined to comment.

Antoine Colombani, spokesman for Joaquin Almunia, the EU’s antitrust chief, declined to comment.