Telstra's online auto deal quashed over competition

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) blocked the proposed deal that would have seen carsales.com.au relaunch TradingPost.com.au using quicksales.com.au staff and infrastructure. The regulator said the acquisition was likely to remove a close and effective competitor to carsales and substantially reduce competition.

The ACCC concluded the proposed acquisition would significantly increase carsales’ market power and reduce competition, harming automotive dealerships and private advertisers. The regulator said Trading Post was a well-established competitive constraint on carsales and the deal would likely remove that competitor.

Under the August announcement, carsales.com.au planned to relaunch TradingPost.com.au using staff and infrastructure from its quicksales.com.au website. Both quicksales and Trading Post would have remained separate brands, with items listed on one site also appearing on the other.

About 100 jobs at Trading Post would have been cut if the deal with carsales.com.au had proceeded, according to the plans announced with the proposed acquisition.

Greg Roebuck called the ACCC decision disappointing, saying the combination of quicksales and a revitalised Trading Post would have brought much-needed competition to the general classifieds and auction space, kept taxes and employment in Australia, and offered stronger choice to consumers and businesses.

Telstra bought the Trading Post Group in 2004 for $636 million when it included newspaper publications and several websites. The investment struggled as auction sites like eBay gained popularity. Telstra opened an auctions site for Trading Post in 2008, closed the Trading Post classifieds newspaper in 2009, and has written down about half of Trading Post’s book value.

The ACCC had already raised concerns in an October statement of issues about the proposed deal’s impact on competition. Those concerns—that the acquisition would reduce competition and increase carsales’ market power—were central to the regulator’s decision to block the transaction.

By blocking the deal, the ACCC maintained Trading Post as an independent competitor in automotive classifieds, preserving an existing competitive constraint on carsales. The ACCC’s decision reflects its view that consolidation in the sector could reduce choice for automotive dealers and private advertisers, even as industry players have faced pressure from auction sites and larger overseas-owned classifieds operators.