The suspense is over: Ottawa gives the green light to the acquisition of Shaw by Rogers, a deal valued at $20 billion that will also see Quebecor take control of Freedom Mobile, Shaw’s mobile phone subsidiary, for $2.85 billion $.
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Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne finally decided on Friday by imposing a series of conditions on the parties, in particular that the arrival in Western Canada of Videotron, owned by Quebecor, leads to a price drop of 20 % in this market.
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“If Canadians do not begin to see a significant reduction in prices within a reasonable time as a result of this decision, I will have no choice but to seek further legislative and regulatory powers in order to bring prices down. And I insist on saying it, nothing is excluded, ”said Mr. Champagne in a morning press briefing on Friday.
Mr. Champagne also requires Quebecor not to transfer its licenses for at least ten years, to install the 5G network in Freedom Mobile territory within two years, to extend wireless service in Manitoba and offering 10% additional data as a temporary bonus to current Freedom customers.
It is the largest agreement concluded in the telecommunications sector in the history of Canada, since it involves the merger of the two largest cable companies in the country and leads to the creation of a “fourth national player” in the Canadian market. .