As European telecoms executives champ at the bit to do more deals, they will be closely watching Luxembourg this week for a crucial decision that could unleash a wave of activity across the sector.
Advocate general at the EU Court of Justice Juliane Kokott will on Thursday deliver her opinion on whether Brussels made the right decision in blocking the proposed merger of the UK businesses of Telefónica’s O2 and CK Hutchison’s Three in 2016.
While harking back to a deal that collapsed six years ago, her verdict will be carefully monitored by France’s Orange and Spain’s MasMovil, who earlier this year announced they are in exclusive talks to combine their Spanish businesses.