Liberty Global is reported to be selling its Austrian and Swiss businesses, leading to speculation that it is putting itself in a better position to merge lock stock and barrel with Vodafone. However, the real block to that often-rumored merger would not be these subsidiaries, but Germany. UK newspaper The Telegraph ran a story last week suggesting that Liberty Global is looking for a buyer for those Austrian and Swiss assets, but the most likely reason is not Vodafone, but because the two properties are closest to maturity, in the broad Liberty cable portfolio, and hardest to grow. In Switzerland it is up against a rejuvenated Swisscom, and losing video subscribers quite rapidly, and yet not making up for them…