PIAC Backgrounder: Rogers’ Acquisition of Shaw

The deal is a ‘friendly’ takeover because both the buyers and the sellers want the deal to close; both the Rogers and the Shaw boards of directors have approved the deal. [...] The Competition Bureau may review any merger of any size in any industry and determine whether the proposed merger is likely to result in a substantial prevention or lessening of competition in a given market.6 For certain transactions, the Competition Act requires parties to the proposed merger to notify the Bureau prior to the closing of the transaction so that it can be reviewed by the Bureau,. [...] The purpose of this advanced notice is to give the Competition Bureau time to assess the potential impact of the proposed merger or acquisition on competition in the market and to possibly avoid some of the challenges associated with denying or undoing a completed merger that is later found to be anti-competitive. [...] 18 The burden is on the merging party to demonstrate to the CRTC that their application “is the best possible proposal and that approval is in the public interest, consistent with the overall objectives of the Broadcasting Act. [...] The Competition Bureau’s Application to the Competition Tribunal The Competition Bureau announced, on May 9, 2022, that it had applied to the Competition Tribunal for an injunction to prevent the parties from closing the proposed transaction and requesting the Competition Tribunal fully block Rogers’ proposed acquisition of Shaw.29 The Competition Bureau’s application to the Competition Tribunal,3.