The Jersey Competition Regulatory Authority (JCRA) says it's minded to refuse clearance for the acquisition of Airtel by Sure, due to competition concerns.

Sure, owned by the Bahrain Telecommunications Company, had previously argued that the Jersey mobile phone market was "small, crowded and fully penetrated" and that acquiring Airtel from Indian-owned telecoms giant Bharti would have enabled a quicker roll-out of 5G across the Channel Islands. 

However the JCRA now says it wants to exercise its power under Article 22(1) of the Competition (Jersey) Law 2005 to refuse the proposed transaction, as it is worried if Airtel is merged with Sure, it would only leave islanders with only one other provider - JT:

"The Proposed Transaction would lead to further concentration in the market, removing direct constraint between the Parties... and leaving consumers with only one alternative supplier in the event that the merged entity raises prices or reduces the quality of its services.

"The substantial decrease in competition would mean if prices rise or the quality of service drops, customers would be left with only one other provider to turn to."

Airtel and Sure have until 5pm next Wednesday (19 July) to respond as the Authority plans to publish a final decision on 24 July 2023.