The UK’s Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has announced that the anticipated acquisition by Cable & Wireless plc of Chelys Ltd (owner of the Energis Group) will not be referred to the Competition Commission. The parties overlap in the supply of various telecommunications services in the UK to business customers. The principal third party concerns, and the OFT's primary focus, related to the supply of telecoms network capacity to phone companies that offer consumers an alternative to BT. This is referred to within the industry as the supply of wholesale indirect access (IDA) services to carrier pre-selection (CPS) retailers. Vincent Smith, Director of Competition Enforcement at the OFT, said: 'The OFT has carefully evaluated third party concerns against all the evidence. We do not believe that Cable & Wireless could impose higher post-merger prices on CPS customers, because of the number of credible competitors to which CPS retailers can turn to supply them with wholesale services.
www.oft.gov.uk