The commission said yesterday it needed more time to assess the impact on both news content and the advertising market.
The decision was expected to be released yesterday but Craigs Investment Partners broker Peter McIntyre said he could see why the commission needed more time.
"The transaction is complex and if they got it wrong, there are huge implications for the whole industry. The commission will be looking at how advertisers are treated and news dissemination through New Zealand. Auckland is 'top heavy' with population but not everyone wants to read about Auckland.
"Regional considerations will have to be reviewed and that affects papers like the Otago Daily Times.''
New Zealand was broken down into parochial regional areas and people in those areas wanted to know what was happening in their patch, he said.
One of the problems faced by the commission was the fast-changing face of the media landscape in New Zealand, Mr McIntyre said.
Even in print media, many stories were accompanied by a video link. Radio was another part of the mix and the merged NZME-Fairfax proposal could mean deals being offered to some advertisers with others excluded if they did not participate.
It was likely the commission would agree to NZME, the publishers of The New Zealand Herald, folding Fairfax's New Zealand assets into NZME - but with some divestments.
"This is a significant issue and the commission will want to use every tool it has at its disposal.''
Mr McIntyre agreed that could mean bringing in outside media experts to provide advice.
The commission said it would consider all submissions and publish its final decision on or before March 15 next year.
Mr McIntyre said some of the 50 submissions on the proposal were likely to have sparked other areas the commission felt obliged to investigate.
Fairfax Media and NZME said some submitters strayed from the competition framework of the Commerce Act to cite concerns not relevant to the commission's assessment of whether the transaction would result in a substantial lessening of competition.
They also argued there was little objection from advertisers, suggesting a competitive advertising market would remain if the two media groups are allowed to combine.
They also said in a ``two-sided market'' where media companies had to attract audiences with content in order to be attractive to advertisers, whose spending, in turn, funded the content, there were economic reasons to maintain the quality and diversity of content.
A merger would combine NZME's flagship New Zealand Herald newspaper and nzherald.co.nz website, a portfolio of radio stations including Newstalk ZB and the GrabOne daily deals site with Fairfax's suite of newspapers including the Sunday Star-Times, The Press, the stuff.co.nz website and magazines including NZ House and Garden.
NZME listed on the NZX as a stand-alone New Zealand media company on June 27 after being spun off from APN News & Media through the issue of shares to APN's existing shareholders.
The shares listed at $1 but by July 13 had dropped to a low of 60c. Mr McIntyre said the shares were infrequently traded and liquidity was proving an issue for shareholders.
The uncertainty about the final determination by the commission would not help investor confidence.
