Expert: Rogers and Shaw merge in $26 billion transaction

Rogers Communications Inc. has struck a deal to acquire Shaw Communications Inc., a takeover that will reshape the country’s telecom landscape provided it receives regulatory approval. The purchase of the Calgary-based telecommunications company would give Rogers a bigger national footprint with deeper access to the West and a national wireline network, according to analysts assessing the transaction, while Rogers itself touted the potential for $1 billion in synergies. (Financial Post)

Here is an expert from McGill University who can provide comment on this issue:

Paul Beaumont, Assistant Professor, Desautels Faculty of Management

“Canadians face some of the highest (if not the highest) prices for telecommunications services in the world. In this context, the Competition Bureau is likely to be very sensitive to the potential price impact of the merger. This in turn will depend on the synergies realized by merging the two companies (notably for the deployment of the 5G network) but also on the extent to which new entrants will be able to compete in a market with three telecom giants.”

Paul Beaumont is an Assistant Professor of Finance at the Desautels Faculty of Management. His scholarly work focuses on corporate finance and growth and acquisitions strategy.

paul.beaumont [at] mcgill.ca (English, French)