Looking for P&O's Prince Charming

P&O shareholders appear to be steering away from a merger with Royal Caribbean and toward a hostile takeover by Carnival

LONDON, England (CNN) -- By voting to adjourn their meeting Friday, P&O Princess stockholders have given themselves and regulators more time to determine who will make the best Prince Charming for their cruise line.

P&O had been hoping the meeting would bring the bidding war between Carnival Corp. and Royal Caribbean Cruises to a head.

The saga's been running since last November, when P&O and Royal Caribbean agreed to merge.

But a few weeks later, Carnival threatened to spoil the party, jumping in with a rival offer, which P&O rejected. Carnival -- nothing if not determined -- came back with three raised offers. Each got the same answer: rejected.

P&O shareholders may be asking which company is the best fit. But the last word could come from regulators in Europe and the United States.

Even without P&O, Carnival already dominates the market.

"You could argue that Carnival, which already has higher margins, might be more efficient, a more efficient operator in a takeover of P&O," says Scheherezade Daneshku of the Financial Times.

"On the other hand, I think the industry would become more interesting if you had two large players rather than one very large dominant one."

P&O concedes that Carnival finally handed in a "realistic offer" but was advising shareholders ahead of this week's meeting to give the nod to its original deal with Royal Caribbean.

Caribbean has threatened to walk away if that's denied -- even at the risk of paying a hefty break-up fee.

It now is up to P&O Chairman Jeffrey Sterling to decide whether to set up another shareholder meeting.