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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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA — The House of Commons industry committee will convene to discuss Rogers’s pursuit of Shaw on January 25, a parliamentary staffer confirmed, in light of new facts and information that emerged from a month-long hearing at the Competition Tribunal that led to the competition court denying a petition to block the deal.
INDU, as the committee is called, will hold two meetings on that date for a total of four hours, the staffer said, which will include discussions about the main deal and the divestiture of Freedom Mobile.
The Globe and Mail, citing sources, reported Friday that a…
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Competition watchdog says wholesale deal could be appealed to the CRTC
By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – The Competition Bureau said in a filing to the Federal Court of Appeal on Friday that the tribunal’s decision to allow Rogers to buy Shaw assumed the fulfillment of commitments from the merging parties that could actually be challenged at the CRTC.
Those commitments include Rogers supplying Videotron – the target buyer of Shaw’s Freedom Mobile – with long-term access to its infrastructure at below market rates, which are regulated by the CRTC.
“The Tribunal failed to consider that these arrangements could be challenged by third parties…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – The Competition Bureau will argue later this month that the Competition Tribunal erred in the steps it took when it determined that there would be no lessening of competition if Rogers is allowed to purchase Shaw.
In an amended appeal filed Friday, the competition commissioner, through the attorney general, said the tribunal navigated the primary question of whether such a merger would lessen competition incorrectly.
The commissioner said the tribunal incorrectly combined the analysis of both the Rogers-Shaw merger with the remedy sale of Shaw’s Freedom assets to Videotron, rather than first evaluating the competition questions for…
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By Ahmad Hathout
OTTAWA – Canada’s largest independent internet service provider is urging federal Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne to block the transfer of Shaw’s wireless spectrum assets to Videotron over concerns that the latter will receive favourable wholesale rates compared to competitors.
The Competition Tribunal earlier this month provided reasons for denying an application to block Rogers from purchasing Shaw, saying Videotron – the regional carrier that is lined up to buy Shaw’s Freedom Mobile as a condition of the deal’s approval – would be a strong competitor in the market and would take market share from the major players in…
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OTTAWA — The Federal Court of Appeal today decided it will hear on January 24 the Competition Bureau’s appeal of the decision by the Competition Tribunal to reject its challenge of the Rogers acquisition of Shaw.
The court and the parties in the matter landed on the date after a 1 hour and 15 minute case management conference today.
The bureau filed a court challenge the day after the tribunal released its decision on Thursday. It obtained the temporary emergency suspension of the decision until the Federal Court decides on the matter.
The tribunal released reasons for its determination…
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OTTAWA — The Competition Bureau said this evening that it has obtained from the Federal Court of Appeal a temporary suspension of the tribunal’s decision last week that denied its application to stop the merger between Rogers and Shaw.
The bureau filed an application in the Federal Court of Appeal seeking to have the decision reviewed, the day after the tribunal ruled within 15 days since the conclusion of hearings that a Videotron with Freedom mobile wireless assets would create competition in the market and that the Rogers-Shaw combination would not lessen it.
The bureau said in a…
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