Australia: Decision on mega-merger delayed

A decision may still be delivered before that date, however, because the tribunal can make only one extension, it has opted for the maximum three-month delay.

On Thursday, Tabcorp gained 1¢ to close at $4.50, and Tatts shares gained 6¢ to close at $4.14.

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The Australian Competition Tribunal has been holding hearings into the Tabcorp-Tatts merger proposal, which faces objections from rival gaming companies and Racing Victoria.

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One of the main concerns centers on Tabcorp's racing broadcast business, Sky Racing, which some fear could inflate the merged company's market power in dealings with pubs and clubs.

Among the parties objecting to the merger are CrownBet, majority owned by James Packer's Crown Resorts, and Racing.com.

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Tabcorp and Tatts say the deal would make them strong enough to compete with international bookmakers.

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"Tabcorp and Tatts are progressing the other government and regulatory approvals required for the transaction and working towards implementing the transaction in the third quarter 2017," Tabcorp said in a statement to the stock exchange.

In its submission, the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission argued that the negative impact on competition outweighed the public benefit.

Tabcorp decided to withdraw from the ACCC's approval process in March and take the proposed deal directly to the competition tribunal after the watchdog flagged concerns.