Digicel has filed a suit in the Supreme Court against the Fair Trading Commission's decision to oppose its merger with mobile operator Claro. The merger will come into effect on 1 March, when Claro will also cease operations in Jamaica. At end-December 2011, Jamaica's Fair Trading Commission (FTC) tool legal action to prevent the approved merger of mobile operators Digicel and Claro. The FTC filed a lawsuit with the High Court this month, seeking several declarations that, if granted, would result in the scuttling of the merger and fines of USD 5 million against Digicel Jamaica and Oceanic Digital Jamaica for breach of the Fair Competition Act, the Jamaica Observer reports. On January 31, when the FTC's case is to be heard, the regulatory body is expected to ask for an injunction blocking the merger. FTC claims the Digicel-Claro merger would negatively impact competition in the telecoms market, affecting mobile service customers. If granted, the injunction would remain in place pending the outcome of the trial. Digicel is challenging whether or not the Fair Trading Act applies to the transaction leading to the pending merger and whether the FTC has jurisdiction in relation to the transaction. This trial will also be heard on 31 January.
