FOG BLOG CANADA LOG: APPEALS COURT REJECTS COMPETITION BUREAU'S BID TO BLOCK ROGERS' SHAW TAKEOVER!

Court rejects Competition Bureau's appeal to block Rogers' takeover of Shaw Only thing standing in way of deal now is ministerial approval Canada's Federal Court of Appeal has rejected the Competition Bureau's request to block the takeover of Shaw by Rogers, a decision that removes one of the final hurdles standing in the way of the $20-billion merger from going ahead.

The merger, first proposed in 2021, would see Toronto-based Rogers Communications Inc. take over Calgary-based rival Shaw Communications Inc. in a move that would further consolidate Canada's top-heavy telecommunications sector.

The deal has faced numerous regulatory hurdles since being proposed, but in a lengthy review process the companies have secured most of the approvals they require to consummate the deal. As part of that process, Rogers has agreed to sell Shaw's wireless business, Freedom Mobile, to Quebec-based Vidéotron.

The Competition Bureau was a major sticking point and sought to block the merger on the grounds that it would be bad for consumers, but a tribunal rejected that argument last month.

The bureau appealed to a higher court to reconsider, and Tuesday's hearing brought an end to that dispute, in the companies' favour.

"According to the tribunal, this was not a particularly close case," the judge said. "It found, I would say, on the evidence rather decisively that there was no substantial lessening of competition."