Rogers, Shaw, and Quebecor’s Videotron announced today that they have agreed to extend the closing date of their transactions to February 17.
The expected closing date of Rogers acquiring Shaw and Videotron acquiring Shaw’s Freedom Mobile assets was January 31, which was set before the Competition Bureau appealed a decision of the Competition Tribunal that denied its petition to block the deal. The Federal Court of Appeal upheld the tribunal’s decision last week, and the bureau said it will not appeal to the Supreme Court.
The transfer of Freedom’s assets to Videotron must now be approved by Innovation…
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MPs will discuss the deal on Monday, letter says
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA — Five members of Parliament sent a letter dated today to Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne urging him not to approve the transfer of Freedom’s spectrum assets to Videotron until a “free and open” process, approved by the Competition Bureau, is held to determine the suitor of the assets.
During a House industry committee hearing Wednesday, some MPs were concerned as to how Rogers ended up getting to pick Videotron as the buyer of Freedom to complete its acquisition of Shaw (the bureau has remained steadfast in…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Members of the House industry committee took issue today with Rogers being allowed to choose Videotron as its competitor to complete its acquisition of Shaw, with one member of Parliament saying it “boggles the mind” to think Rogers would sell Freedom for less if it meant more competition.
Today’s hearing was the committee’s second round at the Rogers-Shaw merger, this time with the new development that Videotron agreed to purchase Freedom from Shaw for nearly $3 billion. It also comes a day after the Federal Court of Appeal upheld a…
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OTTAWA – Rogers’s proposed purchase of Shaw faces just one more hurdle: the innovation minister’s approval of the transfer of Freedom spectrum assets to Videotron, which agreed to purchase the company for nearly $3 billion.
The deal’s prospects improved dramatically when it survived a Competition Bureau challenge at the Federal Court of Appeal, which denied yesterday a request to find in error the Competition Tribunal’s approval of the deal. Even more so when the bureau announced late last evening that it will not appeal the court’s decision.
But now scrutiny will be leveled against it…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA — The Competition Bureau will not challenge a decision by the Federal Court of Appeal today that summarily rejected its arguments against a Rogers acquisition of Shaw, thereby leaving only the minister of innovation to approve or deny the deal.
“We are truly disappointed that the Federal Court of Appeal has dismissed our appeal of the Competition Tribunal’s decision in Rogers-Shaw,” Competition Commissioner Matthew Boswell said in a press release this evening, adding the bureau stands by the findings of its investigation and the decision to challenge the merger.
“We continue to disagree with the…
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The court did not need to hear from merging parties
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – The three-justice panel of the Federal Court of Appeal that initially went for a two-hour lunch during today’s hearing came back 45 minutes later than expected and delivered a verdict from the bench to reject the Competition Bureau’s challenge to a decision by the Competition Tribunal last month that allowed the Rogers purchase of Shaw to move forward.
The decision came after about two-and-a-half hours of arguments from the bureau, which failed to convince the court that the tribunal made errors sufficient enough to require it to…
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The company wants a broader review of off-tariff agreements
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – The largest independent telecom in Canada has filed an application today for the CRTC to review whether Rogers could provide Videotron wholesale access to its network at below market rates, a deal that was struck between the two companies as a sweetener for regulators to approve Rogers’s purchase of Shaw.
TekSavvy had already asked Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne this month to block the deal on the grounds that the wholesale deal was not allowed. And the Competition Bureau filed arguments to be heard in front of the…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – The House industry committee is expected to hear from the companies involved in the Rogers-Shaw megamerger when it holds a hearing on the matter next week, a parliamentary staffer confirmed.
The hearing is expected to begin January 25 with a one-hour session at 11 a.m. with Innovation Canada officials. The staffer said there is a possibility that Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne could attend, but he has yet to confirm.
At noon, the committee will host academics including Jennifer Quaid, Ben Klass, and Keldon Bester.
Then for one hour at 2 p.m., the committee will have…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Rogers Communications said in arguments filed to the Federal Court of Appeal today that its acquisition of Shaw Communications is a non-starter if it doesn’t sell Freedom, hitting back at the Competition Bureau’s central claim on appeal that the Competition Tribunal should have looked at the two deals separately in its analysis when it denied the watchdog’s petition to block the merger.
In its appeal to the appeal court, which will be heard January 24, the bureau argued that the tribunal had incorrectly combined analysis for both the Rogers-Shaw deal with the sale…
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By Connie Thiessen
Rogers Communications Inc. announced yesterday night the passing of Alan Horn, longtime company executive, family ally, and member of the board of directors.
“Alan was one of the most devoted and astute leaders I have ever worked with,” said Edward Rogers, chairman of Rogers Communications, in a statement issued late Monday. “He’s made immeasurable contributions to the company over the past 30 years and for that, we are forever grateful. He not only served as a confidante to Ted, and a trusted advisor to the Board, he was a mentor and a friend to me.”
Horn first…
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