Telekom Austria said that the Austrian Federal Competition Authority is pursuing an “in-depth assessment” of its planned acquisition of operator Yesss, which will follow in turn from 3 Austria’s intended acquisition of Orange Austria.

According to the company, which owns A1, the country’s largest mobile player, the process could take until the end of November 2012. Hannes Ametsreiter, CEO of Telecom Austria Group, said: “for all of our customers’ benefits, I am hoping for a swift decision.”

Yesss is currently owned by Orange Austria, which is being sold by owners Mid Europa Partners and France Telecom, to 3. Yesss will then be sold on to Telekom Austria, a transaction that will see its market share approaching the 50 percent mark.

It had previously been suggested that the deal with Telekom Austria is critical for Hutchison’s Orange transaction, meaning that if the competition authorities act, the whole chain could collapse.