Breaking News: Rogers to buy Shaw

g-idk
Master

Hey everyone,  Just saw the breaking news that Rogers is buying Shaw for $26 Billion Dollars.  Shaw has agreed to the purchase but it will take between 9 to 12 mos. for Regulatory Approval from the Feds.  Well after all these years looks like we are going back to Rogers.  I don't have an opinion yet, need time to absorb this news.  Stay Safe.    

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Just read the news myself in the Globe and Mail.    I’m p...

Spatch
Grasshopper

Just read the news myself in the Globe and Mail.    I’m particularly interested in what the impact will be to the mobile business. I have five lines with Shaw Mobile on the $25 plan and one on the free plan.  Will they be forced to divest themselves from this line of business or be allowed to keep it?  If the latter will those prices be grandfathered?  

But wow what a sea change to the national telecommunications industry if this goes through.  I’ll need to stew on this some more but I’ll need more information before I can form an opinion on the matter.

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I will be a Rogers customer again, but that was when I wa...

rstra
Grand Master

I will be a Rogers customer again, but that was when I was in Vancouver and there weren’t cable boxes and internet, so not much to talk about. A few of my former co-workers will (hopefully) be back working for Rogers.

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Hi  ,  yup I was a Rogers customer in Vancouver also, so...

g-idk
Master

Hi @rstra ,  yup I was a Rogers customer in Vancouver also, so many years ago.  At least the Rogers Ignite system is the same as the Shaw Blue Curve system, so probably no big hardware changes on that end.  

Hi @Spatch , you bring up a good point about the Mobile phone system, guess we have to wait and see.  

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It will be interesting to see in the next few years, afte...

ColtonW24
Grasshopper

It will be interesting to see in the next few years, after regulatory approval, what happens with Shaw's Internet, TV, and Home Phone services. I assume at some point they will consolidate those services to Rogers. Especially since Rogers and Shaw use similar if not the same hardware for Internet and TV services. My main concern with this deal is wireless prices. Rogers purchasing Shaw inherently reduces competition in the wireless industry. Rogers states in their press release regarding the deal that "As part of this announcement, Rogers will not increase wireless prices for Freedom Mobile customers for at least three years after the close of the deal." Regarding Shaw Mobile, Rogers says "There are no changes to your services, your account, or your billing with this announcement. This is a competitive market where customers have choice and we know we must remain competitive on price. After the proposed transaction is completed, we will continue to offer competitive and affordable plans and pricing options to meet the budgets and needs of every customer." So it will be interesting to see what happens with wireless plans and pricing in the next year or two. Basically for me right now, there is hope that this deal with be for the better, but concern that this deal will only hurt consumers due to less competition and as a result increased prices.

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The federal government will likely insist that they conti...

rstra
Grand Master

@ColtonW24 The federal government will likely insist that they continue to operate Freedom Mobile to support their commitment to open up competition in the mobile market.

I was looking at the in home services and see that Rogers is a few dollars more per month than Shaw on the top tier products (gig internet and full TV). Rogers is much more affordable and has more options with small TV packages and slower internet. Personally, I could save about $25 a month going to their Flex 10 and dropping down to internet 150, and only lose a couple of channels. Hopefully, Shaw customers will see the increased bundling options from Rogers.

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I am very curious about what regulators will do. As in th...

ColtonW24
Grasshopper

I am very curious about what regulators will do. As in the US, when AT&T tried to purchase T-Mobile in 2011 for $39 billion, the DOJ filed a lawsuit against AT&T and T-Mobile which sought to block the merger. Eventually, the FCC opposed the merger and as a result, the deal did not go through. Since then, T-Mobile shook the wireless industry in the US and ensured fair competition. AT&T and Verizon have had to offer much better plans and pricing that compete with T-Mobile's offerings. I couldn't imagine what the industry there would be like without T-Mobile. Having said that, it will be very interesting to see if regulators will approve the Rogers and Shaw merger. If they do, they will likely add conditions to ensure that competition remains, as you said.

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I was a shareholder. I sold today to take some profit. I...

nanuuk
Grasshopper

I was a shareholder. I sold today to take some profit. I believe the regulator will not allow this to go through. I am likely to switch to Telus if it does as Rogers ranks right up there with Bell as the worst in expensive product offerings and customer service.

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Lol. Canada is regressing, devolving if you will. Don't b...

Upfront6891
Grasshopper

Lol. Canada is regressing, devolving if you will. Don't be surprised if this in fact is approved. 

And yeah, those who support this sale are investors such as yourselves. Shaw's customer service in the last few years has become far worse than Rogers, but Fido is on par with Shaw. 

No doubt Shaw Mobile customers are in a huge panic now. Anyway, history is repeating itself. I remember how Shaw was known as Rogers before the sale in 2001?

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Why? One word ~money~. The head kahunas stand to make a l...

whomever
Grasshopper

Why? One word ~money~. The head kahunas stand to make a lot. Thirty pieces of silver will go a long way for them.

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