DU, AIUB to conduct Tk 1.1 million impact analysis survey on Robi-Airtel merger

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) has received proposals worth Tk 1.1 million to survey the impact of the planned Robi-Airtel merger.

BTRC Secretary Md Sarwar Alam told bdnews24.com that two universities recently came up with the proposals after they had been requested to conduct surveys.

A BTRC Legal and Licensing official said the Faculty of Engineering of American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB) will do the technical impact analysis of the merger.

The Dhaka University’s (DU) Faculty of Business will conduct the survey on financial and other business impacts of the proposed merger.

AIUB Engineering Faculty and Department of International Business of DU had already submitted separate proposals of Tk 600,000 and Tk 500,000 respectively, said the official.

The commission has primarily decided to accept the proposals.

The BTRC had earlier made formal requests to the institutions for impact analysis surveys which must underline eight key issues and objectives.

The key aspects include – analysis of socio-economic impact of the merger, process and strategies to solve any effects of the merger, impact on employment opportunities, and possibility of retraction or retention of jobs of current employees.

The surveys will also look into the impact of the merger on the telecom market, especially on the competition, and will suggest remedies to overcome any adverse effects.

Customer service, consumer rights, pre- and post-merger shares, capital analysis and other relevant issues will also be surveyed.

Through these surveys, the BTRC will also focus on the post-merger scenario on the spectrum auction roadmap, government taxes, existing licences, network, numbering, and services.

According to the BTRC official, the AIUB and the DU have sent their proposals incorporating all these aspects.

They have been asked to submit the survey reports within eight weeks.

Both the operators had sought the BTRC's permission for a merger.

Malaysia’s Axiata Group and NTT DoCoMo Inc of Japan will have 75 percent share and India’s Bharti Airtel will have the rest after the tie-up.

On Sep 9, the two operators said they were discussing possibilities of merging business operations.