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The Â鶹´«Ã½ Trade Commission has ended the obligation of WestPoint Stevens, Inc., the successor to West Point Pepperell, Inc., to obtain FTC approval before acquiring certain bed linen and bath linen manufacturing assets. The prior-approval requirement was part of a consent order following West Point Pepperell's acquisition of J. P. Stevens & Co. The FTC deleted the provisions pursuant to its recently announced prior-approval policy. Under that policy, the FTC said that with certain exceptions, it no longer will routinely include prior-approval provisions in orders stemming from merger cases and that it presumes that the public interest requires reopening such provisions in outstanding merger orders and making them consistent with the policy.

West Point Stevens is headquartered in West Point, Ga.

The 1988 order allowed West Point to acquire J.P. Stevens, but required that West Point divest certain towel and sheet manufacturing facilities and prohibited West Point, for 10 years, from making certain acquisitions in the sheet and towel industries without prior Commission approval.

The Commission vote to reopen the 1993 order and set aside the prior approval provision was 5-0.

Copies of the Commission order granting the petition are available from the FTC's Public Reference Branch, Room 130, 6th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580; 202-326-2222; TTY for the hearing impaired 1-866-653-4261. To find out the latest news as it is announced, call the FTC NewsPhone recording at 202-326-2710. FTC news releases and other materials also are available on the Internet at the FTC's World Wide Web site at: http://www.ftc.gov

(FTC File No. C3244)