Director of Europe & transatlantic partnerships Max von Thun describes how a merger between Vodafone and Three, two of the biggest telecoms companies in the UK, will drive up prices for consumers and kill competition.

Last month the UK’s competition regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), drew a crowd after it decided to block Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision over fears it would allow Microsoft to monopolise the emerging cloud gaming sector. 

While some criticised the decision for attempting to second guess the evolution of unpredictable technology markets, the CMA was right to withstand political pressure and stop yet another anti-competitive Big Tech merger. But it is now faced with another mega-merger whose harms are even easier to spot. Vodafone’s planned tie-up with rival Three, announced last Wednesday, would create the UK’s largest mobile operator, with almost half the country’s mobile subscribers. 

This sharp increase in market concentration would almost certainly increase prices for consumers. It also poses a national security threat from China in the form of Three’s owner, Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison. 

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