Shaw Communications Inc.
NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(unaudited)
November
30, 2022 and November 30, 2021
[all amounts in millions of Canadian dollars, except share and per share amounts]
The Share Purchase Agreement provides that Videotron, a subsidiary of
Quebecor, will acquire all of the issued and outstanding shares of Freedom. Accordingly, Videotron will acquire the entire Freedom business, including all Freedom-branded wireless and Internet customers, and all of Freedoms infrastructure,
spectrum and retail locations, as well as all of Freedoms existing backhaul and backbone arrangements. The Freedom Transaction also includes long-term agreements pursuant to which Rogers will provide Quebecor with transport services (including
backhaul and backbone) and roaming services. Rogers and Quebecor will provide each other with customary transition services as are necessary to operate Freedoms business for a reasonable period of time post-closing and to facilitate the
separation of Freedoms business from the other businesses and operations of Shaw and its affiliates. Pursuant to the Share Purchase Agreement, the Shaw Mobile-branded wireless subscribers will not be transferred to Videotron and will remain
with Shaw.
Status of the Proposed Transaction: Regulatory Approvals and Related Proceedings
For the Rogers-Shaw Transaction, consistent with the terms of the Arrangement Agreement, the parties made filings with each of the Canadian
Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), the Commissioner, and ISED beginning in April 2021. For the Freedom Transaction, consistent with the terms of the Share Purchase Agreement, the parties made filings with the Commissioner and
ISED beginning in June 2022.
On March 24, 2022, the CRTC completed its comprehensive review and approved the transfer of Shaws
licenced broadcasting undertakings to Rogers, marking an important milestone towards closing of the Rogers-Shaw Transaction.
On
May 9, 2022, the Commissioner filed applications to the Competition Tribunal (the Tribunal) seeking an order to prevent the Rogers-Shaw Transaction from proceeding and an interim injunction to prevent closing until the
Commissioners case could be heard by the Tribunal.
On May 30, 2022, the Commissioners interim injunction application was
resolved on the basis that Rogers and Shaw agreed to not proceed with closing the Rogers-Shaw Transaction until either a negotiated settlement is agreed with the Commissioner or the Tribunal has ruled on the matter. The Tribunal hearing began on
November 7, 2022, and parties final oral arguments were completed on December 14, 2022.
On December 31, 2022, the
Tribunal issued an order dismissing the Commissioners application, an initial summary of which was released on December 29, 2022. On December 30, 2022, the Commissioner advised Rogers, Shaw and Quebecor of his intention to appeal the
decision to the Federal Court of Appeal and to seek an injunction to prevent the Proposed Transaction from closing pending the disposition of that appeal. The Federal Court of Appeal has scheduled a one-day
hearing on January 24, 2023 and issued an order staying (suspending) the Tribunals decision and the closing of the Rogers-Shaw Transaction until the Federal Court of Appeal issues its final judgment in the appeal. The Federal Court of
Appeal ordered the Commissioner to file his arguments by January 13, 2023, and Shaw, Rogers, and Quebecor to file their reply by January 17, 2023.
On October 25, 2022, the Minister of Innovation, Science, and Industry (the Minister) officially denied the application for
the wholesale transfer of Freedoms spectrum licences to Rogers, which is no longer being proposed. In connection with his ongoing review of the pending application to transfer Freedoms spectrum licences to Videotron, the Minister gave
notice that any spectrum licences acquired by Videotron must remain in Videotrons possession for at least ten years and the Minister conveyed his expectation that Videotrons prices for wireless services in Ontario and Western Canada
would be comparable to what Videotron is currently offering in Quebec. Videotron subsequently announced that it is willing to accept these conditions. On December 31, 2022, the Minister indicated that he will render his decision on the transfer
of Freedoms spectrum licences to Videotron once there is clarity on the ongoing legal process arising from the Tribunals decision.
Given the ongoing legal process and the parties continued commitment to the Proposed Transaction, Rogers, Shaw and the Shaw Family
Living Trust have agreed to extend the outside date for closing the Rogers-Shaw Transaction to January 31, 2023. The outside date in the Share Purchase Agreement also tracks the outside date in the Arrangement Agreement but can be extended
beyond January 31, 2023 only with the consent of Videotron. Nonetheless, the time required for the outcome of the Commissioners appeal to the Federal Court of Appeal, as well as for ISED to issue its approval, including any further
appeals of the outcomes of any required regulatory process, is uncertain and could result in further delays in or prevent the closing of the Rogers-Shaw Transaction and the Freedom Transaction.
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