By Patrick Nixon – From BN Americas

Jamaica’s Fair Trading Commission (FTC) says it is holding a public consultation on the proposed merger of Caribbean telcos Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC) and Columbus International.

UK-owned CWC, which operates the LIME brand in the Caribbean, agreed in November to acquire Columbus, which offers Internet and TV via the Flow brand in multiple Caribbean markets. The acquisition is valued at US$3.02bn.

Concerns that that merger will create a monopoly in the Caribbean have prompted probes by various regulators, including Jamaican utilities regulator OUR, whose approval is required.

The Caribbean Telecommunication Union (CTU) and Eastern Caribbean telecom regulation authority Ectel have both said they are investigating the merger.

In a statement, the FTC said it was inviting comments from operators, businesses, consumer groups and any other interested parties to submit their positions.

The FTC said it had recently received an application from the telcos seeking permission to merge the two entities in Barbados.

A statement issued following a special meeting of the Ectel council of ministers noted that, in addition, the regulatory body will also suspend the announcement of a new “price cap plan” until after the completion of the review of the applications by the parties involved, and amend the price cap accordingly.

CWC chief executive, Phil Bentley, has assured the Caribbean governments and regulators that if the company’s acquisition of Columbus International is approved, the enlarged CWC will not negatively impact competition in the cable and broadband markets.

“In the Caribbean countries in which CWC and Columbus overlap – Jamaica, Barbados, St Lucia, St Vincent and Grenada – we know that we have to work closely with governments and regulators to ensure that our customers benefit and competition is not compromised,” Bentley previously said.

Digicel, CWC’s biggest competitor in the Caribbean, has questioned the merger and said it will review its investment strategy as a result.

For more on this story go to: http://www.bnamericas.com/news/telecommunications/jamaica-commission-probes-cwc-columbus-merger

IMAGE: www.jamaicaobserver.com