Plum supported London Economics in carrying out an economic assessment of the acquisition by HKBN of WTT for the Hong Kong regulator OFCA. The merger analysis considered the impacts on potentially affected markets, including retail and wholesale fixed services, and took into account market trends and the implications of technology developments on supply and demand for telecommunications services. Two areas of concerns were identified, namely the risks of unilateral effects arising from potential market power in the provision of local fixed network access to buildings not exclusively for residential use, and the resulting risks to downstream retail providers who are using the merging parties’ wholesale inputs for service provision.

The study also involved a stakeholder engagement exercise and London Economics and Plum also supported OFCA in the assessment of the proposed commitments by the merging parties to address the competition issues raised. The study report has been published by OFCA alongside its decision.