BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC) – The Fair Trading Commission (FTC) says it is inviting submissions from service providers, businesses as well as representatives of consumer groups on the merits and demerits of the proposed multi-billion dollar merger between the British telecommunications company, Cable and Wireless Communications (CWC) and Columbus International.

In a statement, FTC said that it was also urging other parties to submit their positions after announcing that it had recently received an application from the telecommunication companies seeking permission to merge the two entities in Barbados.

“In keeping with Section 20 (7) of the Fair Competition Act, the Commission is assessing the proposed merger transaction,” the FTC said, adding that interested parties are also invited to participate in a survey on the telecommunications industry.

It said the identities of respondents will not be disclosed.

Earlier this month, the St Lucia-based Eastern Caribbean Telecommunications Authority (ECTEL) said it would ensure that any new licence granted to CWC, to operate in the sub-region will take into account the need for fair competition.

A statement issued following a special meeting of the ECTEL Council of Ministers, noted that in addition, the regulatory body will also suspend the announcement of a new “Price Cap Plan” until after the completion of the review of the applications by the parties involved, and amend the Price Cap accordingly.

CWC chief executive, Phil Bentley, has given a commitment to Caribbean governments and regulators that if the company’s three billion US dollar acquisition of Columbus International is approved, the enlarged CWC will not negatively impact competition in the cable and broadband markets.

“In the Caribbean countries in which CWC and Columbus overlap—Jamaica, Barbados, St Lucia, St Vincent and Grenada—we know that we have to work closely with governments and regulators to ensure that our customers benefit and competition is not compromised.

“And that’s a commitment we happily make to all our stakeholders. I know that we have got a member of the Caribbean media here today, so I will repeat my commitment for your benefit: this is a transaction that will benefit all our customers and will not compromise competition. After all, our biggest competitor in the Caribbean will still be bigger than us after this deal,” he said.

Digicel, CWC’s biggest competitor in the Caribbean, has repeatedly stressed that approval of the transaction will provide CWC with market dominance in fixed broadband and in cable.