The Jamaican Supreme Court has dismissed applications from regional operator LIME to overturn the government’s decision to approve Digicel’s takeover of Claro’s Jamaican operations.
LIME, which is controlled by UK-based Cable & Wireless…
The Jamaican Supreme Court has dismissed applications from regional operator LIME to overturn the government’s decision to approve Digicel’s takeover of Claro’s Jamaican operations.
LIME, which is controlled by UK-based Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC), said that it had been applying for leave to seek a judicial review of the government’s decision to transfer Claro’s telecoms licence to Digicel.
This was rejected by the Supreme Court. LIME said it will apply to the Court of Appeal against this ruling.
Digicel welcomed the Supreme Court’s ruling.
Richard Fraser, Digicel’s head of legal and regulatory affairs, dismissed LIME’s attempt to get the approval revoked, saying that “[the transaction] is clearly permissible by the law”.
LIME argued that, without significant regulatory reform, the merger of Claro and Digicel would lessen competition in the market.
“LIME is encouraged by the Government’s stated commitment to regulatory change and is urging all the relevant authorities to speedily enact the necessary legislation in order to preserve competition in the telecoms industry, and to protect the rights of Jamaican consumers,” it said in a statement.
Digicel provides mobile services throughout the Caribbean.
Claro is controlled by the Mexican telecoms group America Movil.
Claro and Digicel announced the deal to exchange assets in March. Under the terms of the agreement, Digicel takes over Claro’s operations in Jamaica, while Claro takes control of Digicel’s businesses in El Salvador and Honduras.
The Jamaican prime minister approved the Jamaican part of the deal on 31 August. On the same day, he also said that new telecoms regulation was required on the island.
“This issue has brought into sharp focus the need to strengthen the legal and regulatory framework for the telecommunications industry to bring it in line with contemporary best practices and ensure that the interest of the consumer is held paramount,” he said then.
The Claro-Digicel deal has been approved in El Salvador, but a decision is still pending in Honduras.
