The Competition Bureau says a Federal Court has issued an emergency stay temporarily suspending the Competition Tribunal’s dismissal of its case against Rogers Communications Inc. The federal agency says the suspension will remain in place until its application for a stay and an injunction is heard. This legal injunction suspends the finalization of Rogers Communications’ billion-dollar takeover of Shaw Communications until the Bureau’s appeal of Thursday’s decision is heard. The deal was originally expected to close by the end of 2022, or by January 31 if an extension becomes necessary. The Bureau had sought to block the merger and states in its appeal that the Tribunal acted outside of its legal jurisdiction in a “rush to judgment.”
Here are links to source information, including the Competition Tribunal’s decision to dismiss the case (against Rogers Communications Inc.) :
https://decisions.ct-tc.gc.ca/ct-tc/cdo/en/521175/1/document.do : Dec. 31, 2022 : Order.
https://torontosun.com/globe-newswire/shaw-communications-statement-on-decision-by-competition-tribu... : Jan. 2, 2023
https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/shaw-rogers-merger-1.6701854
https://www.thestar.com/business/2023/01/02/competition-bureau-gets-temporary-stay-of-tribunal-decis...
What do you think will happen to the amount and level of competition (for cellular phone service customers) in Canada, outside Quebec, if Rogers is allowed to eliminate one of it’s business competitors?
Will Videotron (in Quebec) fix Freedom Mobile’s service quality problems and make it a serious competitor to Public Mobile and Telus?
What do you think will happen if this takeover is allowed and Rogers Communications sets it’s sights on Telus in the future, once this legal precedent (if it is one) is set?
Having just found a great cell phone service company such as Public Mobile, it will be a big disappointment to have it taken away (in the future), if that were to ever happen.
