The competition watchdog has urged the European Commission not to approve the proposed £10.3bn merger between O2 and Three.
CK Hutchison Holdings, the conglomerate which owns Three, announced it was looking to buy O2 from its Spanish parent Telefonica in March last year.
It would create the largest mobile operator in the UK, cornering more than a third of the market.
However, the deal is being investigated by European regulators amid concerns it could reduce competition and push up prices.
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) today wrote to EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager explaining why it objects to the merger.
CMA chief executive Alex Chisholm said: “We believe this merger would give rise to a significant impediment to effective competition in retail and wholesale mobile telecoms markets.”
He said measures offered by CK Hutchison to appease concerns “are materially deficient as they will not lead to the creation of a fourth Mobile Network Operator (MNO) capable of competing effectively and in the long-term with the remaining three MNOs such that it would stem the loss of competition caused by the merger”.
The only remedy the CMA would accept is the sale of either the Three or O2 business, to ensure there are still four competing mobile operators in the UK.
Full content: Telegraph
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
Featured News
Judge Mehta Questions Both Sides in Landmark Google Antitrust Case
May 2, 2024 by
CPI
FCC Urges Urgent Funding for Removal of Chinese Telecom Equipment from U.S. Networks
May 2, 2024 by
CPI
Former Pioneer CEO Facing Potential Criminal Charges For Colluding With OPEC
May 2, 2024 by
CPI
South Korea’s Antitrust Regulator Greenlights K-Pop Powerhouse Deal
May 2, 2024 by
CPI
Exxon’s Pioneer Purchase Approved, Former CEO Barred from Board
May 2, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Economics of Criminal Antitrust
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Navigating Economic Expert Work in Criminal Antitrust Litigation
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
The Increased Importance of Economics in Cartel Cases
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
A Law and Economics Analysis of the Antitrust Treatment of Physician Collective Price Agreements
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI
Information Exchange In Criminal Antitrust Cases: How Economic Testimony Can Tip The Scales
Apr 19, 2024 by
CPI