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LONDON, July 19 (Reuters) - Britain's competition regulator has provisionally cleared Broadcom's $69 billion deal to buy VMware, it said on Wednesday, adding that it would not weaken competition in the supply of critical computer server products. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in March raised concerns that the deal could make servers more expensive, prompting an in-depth investigation.
"After examining the evidence gathered from Broadcom, VMware and other interested parties, an independent CMA panel has provisionally found the deal would not substantially reduce competition in the supply of server hardware components in the UK," the regulator said.
The EU approved the deal a week ago.
The CMA said it consult on its provisional view before issuing a final report by Sept. 12.
(Reporting by Muvija M and Paul Sandle; editing by William James)
