Story by Denise Paglinawan •
New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh is urging federal industry minister François-Philippe Champagne to reject the proposed merger of Rogers Communications Inc. and Shaw Communications Inc.© Provided by Financial Post
New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh is urging federal industry minister François-Philippe Champagne to reject the proposed merger of Rogers Communications Inc. and Shaw Communications Inc.
In a letter dated Feb. 12, Singh told Champagne that the deal “is expected to make our cell and internet bills more expensive,” citing the Competition Bureau, which failed to block the takeover after several attempts.
The $26-billion merger is now in the hands of Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), led by Champagne, who must approve the transfer of spectrum licences.
“Act now in the interests of the millions of Canadians that will ultimately be affected by your decision,” Singh wrote.
The NDP leader claimed Rogers’ takeover of Shaw will also result in “hundreds of workers” losing their jobs, noting that Rogers had said the deal would save $1 billion in “synergies.”
“In addition to higher prices and layoffs, the Rogers-Shaw merger is already leading to less competition, less innovation and less choice for consumers,” Singh added, alleging Rogers’ rivals had already bought out independent ISPs in preparation for the merger, including Bell’s recent acquisitions of EBOX and Distributel.
The deal has already received approval from the Competition Tribunal after weeks-long hearings, a decision that was upheld by the Federal Court of Appeals last month. Singh said the hands of the tribunal and the courts “were tied by a weak Competition Act.”
Vass Bednar: The Rogers-Shaw competition ruling shows the system is broken
The Tribunal rejected the Bureau’s arguments that combining the two telecom giants would substantially lessen wireless competition, particularly in light of a side deal to sell Shaw’s Freedom Mobile to Quebecor Inc. subsidiary Vidéotron for $2.85 billion.
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Federal minister says he’s not bound by Rogers deadline
, Bloomberg New
Shaw Communications Inc. briefly fell to its lowest since January after Canada’s industry minister said he’s not required to make a final decision on Shaw’s sale to Rogers Communications Inc. by the Feb. 17 deal deadline.
“I am not bound by any date that the parties could decide between themselves,” Industry Minister François-Philippe Champagne told reporters in Montreal. “What interests me is the interests of Canadians. I will make my decision in time and place.”
Shaw fell as low as $39.32 on Monday before paring losses to trade at $39.57 at 11:24 a.m. The Rogers offer is C$40.50 per share.
The companies can extend the deadline, as they already have on multiple occasions. Rogers and Shaw announced the friendly takeover in March 2021, saying they hoped to close it in mid-2022. That date was eventually shifted to the end of last year, then to Jan. 31, then to Feb. 17.
Champagne’s approval is the final step in Rogers’ proposed $20 billion takeover of Shaw, a deal that represents one of the largest mergers in Canadian history. \
Rogers and Shaw have made a separate agreement to sell Freedom Mobile, Shaw’s main wireless business, to Quebecor Inc. for almost $3 billion. Without the minister’s consent for that, the larger deal can’t be completed because of antitrust issues. Rogers is already the largest wireless provider in Canada.
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