OTTAWA – Rogers Communications, Shaw Communications and Videotron are headed to mediation with the Competition Bureau at the end of the month, the Competition Tribunal confirmed today.
Earlier this year, the Commissioner of Competition applied to the tribunal to have the proposed merger of Rogers and Shaw blocked. Since then, Rogers and Shaw have come to an agreement with Quebecor subsidiary Videotron for the sale of Shaw’s Freedom Mobile to try to assuage concerns about the potential impact of the merger on wireless competition.
“Given the public interest in this proceeding, the Competition Tribunal confirms that a mediation is scheduled to occur in late October 2022,” a statement from Justice Andrew Little, chair of the tribunal, dated Oct. 14 and released today reads.
“Mediation is a confidential process in which a mediator assists the litigating parties to attempt to negotiate a consensual resolution to their dispute.
“The Tribunal will make no further statement about the confidential mediation in this matter,” he added.
A scheduling order from the tribunal indicates Oct. 27-28 was previously reserved for a second mediation attempt, if applicable (the first took place at the beginning of July and failed).
Should mediation be successful this time around, the parties will be avoiding what could be a five-week long hearing starting Nov. 7, 2022.
Should the hearing go forward, the tribunal has indicated it will be held by videoconference.
