OTTAWA – The Competition Bureau has officially sanctioned Telus’ proposed acquisition of Public Mobile.
The Bureau said Friday in a statement that it has issued a No Action Letter (NAL) with respect to the acquisition after determining that “the proposed transaction is unlikely to substantially lessen or prevent competition in the sale of mobile wireless telecommunications services in Southern Ontario and Greater Montreal." Such a letter confirms that the Bureau has reviewed a specific proposed transaction and concluded that it will not, at this time, challenge that proposed transaction before the Competition Tribunal under the merger provisions of the Competition Act.
"Our review concluded that remaining non-incumbents are likely to continue to provide effective competition in areas previously served by Public Mobile," said John Pecman, Commissioner of Competition, in the statement. "But as the vast majority of Canadian wireless subscribers are served by three national incumbent providers, the Bureau will continue to closely monitor the evolution of competition in Canada’s wireless telecommunications industry and take action where appropriate."
As part of its review, the Bureau learned that Public Mobile was going to discontinue its $19/month "Unlimited Talk" plan due to financial sustainability issues, and expressed concern that the proposed transaction could accelerate the timing of the elimination of the plan. During the review, Telus advised the Bureau that it will continue to offer, under the Public Mobile brand, a $19/month "Unlimited Talk" plan until at least the end of 2014, on substantially the same terms as Public Mobile’s current $19/month "Unlimited Talk" plan.
Industry Canada as already approved the sale, as Cartt.ca has reported.
