Britain’s competition regulator CMA said on Wednesday it had decided to provisionally clear U.S. company Viasat’s VSAT.O buyout of Inmarsat following an in-depth review.
The CMA said the deal would not substantially reduce competition in the provision of wifi on commercial flights because the satellite sector was expanding rapidly with the entry of new players such as Elon Musk’s Starlink.
“This competition has led us to provisionally conclude that airlines and their UK customers will not be adversely affected by the deal,” said the chair of the CMA inquiry, Richard Feasey.
The two companies welcomed the announcement.
“We will continue to engage with regulators in Europe and the U.S. on remaining regulatory approvals and will update the market as they progress,” they said in a joint statement.
Source: Hellenic Shipping News
