(10 Sep 2013, 3:03 pm)eezypeazy wrote Yes, A1 Buses will be able to join NTL and share in the revenue. After your Fencehouses service is successfully established, you might want to try a service into Sunderland, thereby increasing your NTL revenue share. Let's say that you then build up a successful operation via Washington and Heworth to Newcastle and all is going well and that A Line want to sell to you and you want to buy them. You'll need to be careful at this stage - if you want to buy a neighbouring operation, you might find yourself referred to the Competition Commission. You'll need to declare your hand to the CC fairly early on in the negotiations, ie., before A Line tell you about their costs, margins, and fares, because such talk might breach competition law. Then the CC might block the deal if they rule that it would lead to a decrease in the amount of competition in the area....

Better idea: just start a taxi operation, there's far less regulation!

They wouldn't though - there's no obligation of a private limited company with share capital to sell shares to anyone. Just being a bus operator in Tyne and Wear doesn't mean you have a god given right to purchase shares in a private company.

Edit: And lets remember that the competition commission was previously known as the Monopolies and Mergers Commission. I find the old name gives more clarity on who would be a target by the organisation.