Orange UK, T-Mobile UK offer concessions to finish merger
updated 05:15 pm EST, Wed February 17, 2010
Orange, T-Mobile to make compromises in merger
In an attempt to ward off an investigation by the UK's Office of Fair Trading into their proposed merger, Orange and T-Mobile UK said today they are willing to make antitrust concessions. The Brussels office of the European Commission stated that the two companies offered some fixes to their proposed deal, but didn't elaborate on their details. The deal would create the largest wireless operator in the UK, and a deeper inquiry as to its legitimacy was called for by competitors Telefonica and Hutchison Whampoa's 3.
T-Mobile and Orange are eager to avoid an investigation, as a formal inquiry could delay the merger by as much as one year. If approved, the resulting company would have some 43 percent of the wireless market in the UK.
The European Commission will rule on the merger request on March 1st. [via BusinessWeek]
