Report: EC considering delay of Sun-Oracle over MySQL concerns

The European Commission may delay Oracle's acquisition of Sun Microsystems over concerns about Oracle getting its hands on Sun's MySQL, according to a Reuters report that cites at least two unnamed sources. The delay, if the commission decides to open an investigation to look into its concerns, could be as long as four months.

Regulators in the U.S. gave the deal a thumbs-up last month after initially delaying it over concerns about licensing of Sun's java software but gave no indication that MySQL was a concern.

The deal, valued at $7.4 billion, was announced in April after talks between Sun and IBM reportedly broke down. Since then, rivals such as HP and IBM have been trying to lure Sun's customers. A delay would give the competition even more time to grab Sun customers.

Also see: ZDNet’s full coverage of Oracle-Sun acquisition news