The Rogers-Shaw merger deal has been approved by the Canadian Competition Tribunal, but the Competition Bureau is fighting to be further convinced. Moreover, before the merger successfully proceeds, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, minister of innovation, science and industry, must also approve spectrum license transfers.
Pending since March 2021, the Canadian Competition Tribunal published its approval to the CAD26 billion (US$19.2 billion) Rogers-Shaw merger, as long as Shaw first completes its disposal of Freedom Mobile. As per the Tribunal, this judgment related to selling Shaw’s Freedom Mobile subsidiary to Quebec-based Videotron is unlikely to result in higher prices for consumers.
The Tribunal has also determined that the “strengthening of Rogers’ position in Alberta and British Columbia, combined with the very significant competitive initiatives that Telus and Bell have been pursuing since the merger was announced, will also likely contribute to an increased intensity of competition in those markets.”
Following this, the Tribunal dismissed the application by Competition Bureau Head Matthew Boswell to block the transaction. Despite this, the Competition Bureau says a Federal Court has issued an emergency stay temporarily suspending the Tribunal’s dismissal of its case against Rogers’ takeover of Shaw.
As reported, Canadian Minister Champagne says that he will wait for legal proceedings to conclude before making his final decision.
In response to the Bureau’s continued resistance, Rogers and Shaw issued a joint statement expressing their commitment to bringing more choice, more affordability and more connectivity to Canadians. “The Tribunal’s decision was the right one, and the Tribunal was clear in its summary that the transactions we have proposed are not likely to substantially lessen competition in Alberta and British Columbia. Instead, as the Tribunal found, the transactions will likely result in an intensifying of competition,” the statement read.
The telcos are deeply disappointed that the Commissioner continues to attempt to “deny Canada and Canadians the advantages that will come from these proposed transactions.”
The deal was originally scheduled to close by the end of the year, with a possible extension set until January 31.
