FTC Receives Two Petitions for Approval of Proposed Divestitures from SCI and Alderwoods Group

Petitions for approval of proposed divestiture: The Commission has received two petitions from Service Corporation International (SCI) and Alderwoods Group, Inc. seeking approval of a proposed divestiture related to SCI’s recent acquisition of Alderwoods. In the FTC’s consent agreement and order allowing the transaction to proceed with conditions, SCI and Alderwoods were required to divest a range of funeral home and cemetery services companies. Through the petitions, public versions of which can be found on the Commission’s Web site as a link to this press release, the companies have requested approval to divest Ivers & Alcorn Funeral Home in Atwater, California and Ivers & Alcorn Funeral Home in Merced, California to Ivers & Alcorn Atwater Funeral Services, Inc., and Ivers & Alcorn Merced Funeral Services, Inc., collectively IAFS. In addition, the companies have requested approval to divest Griffin Funeral Home in Hobbes, New Mexico to Griffin Funeral Home, Inc.

The FTC is seeking public comments on the proposed divestiture for 30 days, until July 19, 2007, after which it will decide whether to approve it. Comments should be sent to: FTC, Office of the Secretary, 600 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Washington, DC 20580. (FTC File No. 061-0156, Docket No. C-4174; the staff contact is Elizabeth A. Piotrowski, Bureau of Competition, 202-326-2623, see press release dated November 22, 2006.)

Copies of the documents mentioned in this release are available from the FTC’s Web site at http://www.ftc.gov and from the FTC’s Consumer Response Center, Room 130, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20580. Call toll-free: 1-877-FTC-HELP.