The Competition Commission, which was handed the Kangaroo VOD JV proposal in June for a six-month inquiry, is delaying the process for a further month because BBC Worldwide, ITV (LSE: ITV) and Channel 4 haven’t yet hammered out the fine print themselves.

The commission this morning said it is extending the inquiry’s timetable “whilst it awaits important information on details of the joint venture, which are still being negotiated by the parties”. It asked for the info last week; the broadcasters said they didn’t have it but the commission says the information “is central to assessing the CC’s statutory questions, including the competitive effects of the joint venture”.

The commission said its request “revealed a number of important issues which are outstanding between the parties and which they have indicated they are unable
to resolve without further negotiation”. In other words, Kangaroo isn’t fully planned out yet and the partners need to carry on talking.

But the trio have told the commission they will hand over the information “by early September”. The commission said: “This would result in our provisional findings being published in early November and an extension to our statutory deadline of about a month to mid-January 2009; although, depending in part on the parties’ progress, we may be able to report sooner.”

The Office of Fair Trading’s referral to the commission angered ITV exec chairman Michael Grade most notably. Delivering earnings this week, he again protested the delay - after all, ITV’s outlook is bleak and Kangaroo is a central part of the broadcaster’s ambitious £150 million web sales target, which has now been postponed two years to 2012. But the ball is now in Kangaroo’s own court and the onus on them to accelerate the process.

An “issues statement” published today by the commission reveals Kangaroo will be “web-based” - unlike its iPlayer predecessor, which began as an app before concentrating on web delivery.

Though no conclusion has been arrived at, the statement says the commission has already found three areas in which Kangaroo might lead to a substantial lessening of competition: VOD wholesale rights, VOD retail pricing and the retail sector again if Kangaroo charges non-JV partners more for content. The commission will also examine advertising.

“We will consider whether, in the absence of this JV, each party would have been likely to have provided an independent VoD service and, if so, what form such a service might have taken.”

• OFT Refers Kangaroo To Competition Commission, Launch Delayed By Up To Six Months
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• Kangaroo Faces OFT Questions; Minor Inquiry