Today is the deadline for Rogers Communications Inc., Shaw Communications Inc. and Quebecor Inc. to reach a definitive agreement on the sale of wireless service provider Freedom Mobile.
Last month, Rogers announced it would sell Freedom to Quebecor for $2.85 billion in a deal it hopes will appease federal regulators opposed to its proposed takeover of Shaw. for $26 billion.
The deal will see Quebecor buy all Freedom-branded wireless and Internet customers, as well as its infrastructure, spectrum and retail outlets.
Rogers, Shaw and Quebecor argue that their deal would effectively sustain a “strong and enduring” fourth wireless service provider in Canada because the deal would expand Quebecor’s wireless business nationwide.
The deadline comes as Rogers manages the fallout from its nationwide service outage that began last Friday and affected millions of customers.
The Rogers-Shaw transaction already has shareholder and Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission approval, but must still receive approval from the Competition Bureau and Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on July 15, 2022