VIRGIN Media and O2 will create more than 4000 UK jobs if they're allowed to merge, it is claimed.
Liberty Global and Telefonica, the owners of the telecoms brands, announced plans for the £31 billion mega-merger in May.
It aims to bring together O2's 34 million customers on its mobile network with Virgin's 5.3m broadband, pay-TV and mobile users.
If successful, that will create a rival to BT and its EE mobile network.
Another 1000 apprenticeships are also promised if authorities allow the merger.
The businesses have already said they will invest £10b in the UK over the next five years.
In a joint statement, Telefonica head Jose Maria Alvarez-Pallete and Mike Fries, chief executive of Liberty Global, said: "We want to create a national connectivity champion for the UK which can support the country in its digital-led recovery, by investing in the infrastructure the country needs and promoting jobs and apprenticeships to improve the digital skills base.
"We want to create the leading fixed and mobile competitor in the market, supporting consumers, businesses and society, and this announcement demonstrates our confidence in the long-term potential of the UK's digital economy."
The tie-up is expected to close in the middle of next year, subject to regulatory approvals.
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