Sky Network Television, New Zealand’s largest pay-TV provider, reportedly is in talks with 2degrees, the country’s number three mobile player, about a content deal to allay competition concerns about its planned merger with market leader Vodafone New Zealand.

Sky provided 2degrees with pricing details and the terms on using its programming, news portal Stuff reported. Meanwhile number two mobile operator Spark New Zealand, which wouldn’t say if it was negotiating with Sky, said it would be interested in bundling Sky content with its own, but only with the right terms.

Sky, which has a near monopoly on the country’s rugby and other major sports programming, is taking steps to convince rivals and the regulator that the combined telco-media company won’t be a threat to competition in the broadband and mobile markets.

Competitors have already complained about Vodafone offering its unlimited broadband subscribers free access to Sky Sports for a year. A Vodafone representative, however, said it purchased products from Sky “under the same wholesale terms as offered to other partners”, Stuff reported.

Spark complained in August to the country’s antitrust regulator about the proposed merger, arguing to the Commerce Commission that the deal should be blocked unless Sky changed the way it offers wholesale sports content to rivals.

Vodafone Group announced in early June it plans to merge its operations in New Zealand with the country’s largest pay-TV provider Sky Network, which will offer NZD1.25 billion in cash, to be funded through new debt, and the rest in new Sky shares. Vodafone will end up with 51 per cent in the combined company.

Vodafone has a 39 per cent share of New Zealand’s mobile market, just ahead of Spark, with a 38 per cent share.

The merger comes at a time when Sky faces increasing competition from online media streaming services like Netflix, which has been expanding aggressively across Asia Pacific.

The Commerce Commission is expected to make a decision on the merger next month.