The Competition Authority authorizes Bouygues Telecom to acquire La Poste Telecom

The Competition Authority has given the green light to Bouygues Telecom’s takeover of the mobile telephone operator La Poste Telecom, owned by the La Poste group and SFR. The independent authority, which “has ruled out any risk of harm to competition linked to the transaction on the markets concerned”therefore authorizes it “without conditions”she wrote in a press release on Monday, August 19.

The regulator said it had been notified by Bouygues Telecom of its proposed acquisition of La Poste Telecom on 12 July, five months after the Bouygues group subsidiary announced that it was in exclusive negotiations to take control of the virtual operator for €950 million. The agreement also provides that La Poste will retain control of the brand’s distribution within post offices.

The Authority “considered that the transaction is not likely to harm competition”, “due to La Poste Telecom’s limited market share”according to the press release. “It also took into account the competition exerted mainly by MNOs [principaux opérateurs de téléphonie] Bouygues Telecom competitors: Orange, SFR and Free.” She finally indicates having “removed the risk” that Bouygues Telecom does not degrade or refuse access to its network to virtual operators (or MVNOs) competing with La Poste Telecom, which do not have the infrastructure and rent the networks of the sector’s giants.

“La Poste does not wish to comment” to the announcement of the Competition Authority, she reacted, contacted by AFP. The La Poste group had announced in mid-January that it had started “a reflection on the evolution of capital” of its subsidiary launched in 2011 and 51% owned with SFR, co-shareholder (49%) which provides its network. In addition to the agreement of the Competition Authority, this acquisition still requires the approval of SFR, committed to providing the La Poste Telecom network until the end of 2026.