According to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the agreement would establish the largest mobile network in the UK and perhaps enhance network performance.
With the announcement of the proposed £15 billion merger last year, 27 million customers would be served by a single provider.
However, the CMA noted that promises of a speedier 5G network are “overstated” and that the new network would not “necessarily have the incentive” to carry out its improvement and investment plan.
The regulator added that consumers might have to pay extra for services they don’t value.
The CMA continued by saying that it is especially worried about the potential impact on people who are least able to pay increased bills.
It is also concerned that, following the merger, some customers would receive worse service—possibly with lesser data plans in phone contracts.
The combination would lead to a “substantial lessening of competition” in the UK, the CMA has provisionally decided.
It will now think about how the businesses could respond to such worries. The CMA may cancel the entire transaction if they are not met.
Implementing customer protection measures and entering into legally enforceable investment pledges under the supervision of communications regulator Ofcom are two potential solutions to address those competition-related problems.
