The president of Spain’s communications regulator CNMC has raised fears about the competitive implications of Orange’s imminent takeover of Jazztel, which will reduce the number of major operators in Spain to just three: Telefonica, Vodafone and Orange. "Three operators is a troubling number for any competition regulating authority," said Jose Maria Marin at a Senate hearing, according to Europa Press. The result could be an increase in prices and a decline in service quality, said Marin, who went on to add that the existence of numerous operators in Spain had resulted in the offer of "relatively cheap telecommunications packages”.
The CNMC’s president also suggested that competition would only be restored if a fourth major telecoms player were created. Recent Spanish press reports have indicated that the European Commission's antitrust authority is thinking along similar lines and may ask Orange to transfer part of its network assets to a smaller Spanish operator as a condition for approving its proposed EUR 3.4 billion takeover of Jazztel.
