Vodafone acquires two telecom expense management firms

On 10.08.10, In Mobile, By Editor

Vodafone has grabbed two telecom expense management firms. Vodafone is spending US$9.7 million to buy two firms specializing in managing telecom expenses.

According toVodafone, it is buying Australia-based Quickcomm for US$6.9 million and U.S.-based firm TnT Expense Management for US$2.8 million. TnT’s managed telecoms expense service, based on expert analysis as well as automated bill processing, will be a strong addition to Vodafone Global Enterprise’s existing services team.

According to Nick Jeffery, chief executive officer of Vodafone Global Enterprise, these acquisitions will benefit the customers by providing even greater visibility and control of their fixed and mobile spend and this, in turn, will further the business case for multinationals to adopt unified communications solutions.

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Idea’ six overlapping licenses to be acquired by Indian govt

On 05.01.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Idea Cellular is going to be asked by the communication ministry of India to all six overlapping telecom licenses it got following its acquisition of Spice Communications in 2008. Idea Cellular is currently in the process of hiving off these six overlapping licenses it inherited from Spice Communications into two entities.

The operator intends to sell them later but the move of the government can act as a major blow.  Airwaves or spectrums that have been allotted to these licenses will also have to be surrendered by Idea.  Even the entry fee for these licenses will not be refunded implying that the telco will have to forgo the Rs 800 crore it paid as entry fee.

Last year, Idea planned to demerge licenses for Punjab and Karnataka into a company named Vitesse, while Delhi, Haryana, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh licenses was decided to be spun off into an entity called Claridges Communications. After acquiring Spice Communications in October 2008, Idea’s licenses for six regions namely Punjab, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana and Maharashtra were held by Spice.

Spice’s licenses were not utilized by Idea cellular in the four regions – Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana and Maharashtra — since the Aditya Birla-promoted telco already offered mobile phone services in the regions.

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Zain- Bharti deal might be reversed due to Econet (Nigeria)

On 04.12.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: With an aim to resolve Zain’s Nigerian unit ownership situation, Econet Wireless International has expressed its intentions to get Zain’s deal with Indian firm Bharti Airtel reversed.

According to Goldman Sachs analyst Hugh McCaffrey, Econet management intends to reverse the transaction and exercise its right of first refusal on the 65% stake in the Nigerian asset, however, an issue that may potentially affect the closure of the transaction is the ownership dispute from minority shareholders of the Nigerian unit.

The ownership dispute might lead to the surrender of ownership rights in the Nigerian asset by Indian telco, Bharti Airtel. Econet has already announced that Zain’s Nigerian assets should not be counted for sale until the shareholding is resolved.

Goldman Sachs has also cited that Econet management would also likely claim damages against Zain and if successful, in a worst-case scenario, Bharti would have to relinquish ownership rights over the Nigerian assets and perhaps renegotiate the amount it paid to Zain to acquire its African assets.

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Etisalat might face inquiry by Pak govt over PTCL deal

On 04.07.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The highest standards of transparency” has been applied by Etisalat in the acquisition of its stake in Pakistan Telecommunications (PTCL) and the operator has also maintained that it is entitled to withhold payments under the terms of the transaction over an unresolved property issue.

A share purchase agreement has been signed by Etisalat with Pakistan’s government to acquire a 26 percent stake in PTCL for USD 2.6 billion. However, some payments to the Pakistani government were withheld by Etisalat because of a disagreement over the ownership of several properties in the country that were part of the deal.

Etisalat made it clear that it will immediately release the installments the moment Pakistan’s Privatization Commission fulfills this obligation.
As per the latest media reports, an inquiry have been proposed by Pakistan’s government into

Etisalat conduct in Pakistan regarding PTCL. According to Pakistan’s Minister for Privatization Waqar Ahmed Khan, the deal was made without involving the country’s Privatization Commission and that the properties that were to be transferred to Etisalat under the deal included lands that are not owned by the federal or provincial government.

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America Movil plans to close Carso, Telmex takeovers soon (Latin America)

On 03.26.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The proposed acquisitions of Telmex Internacional SAB and Carso Global Telecom SAB has been planned to be closed by America Movil SAB in the month of May, America Movil is Latin America’s largest mobile operator. The tender offers for the two companies will be launched by America Movil on April 7 and May 5.

With a deal creating a telecom giant with about 250 million subscribers in the Americas, Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim’s has planned to consolidate his diverse telecommunications holdings under America Movil through this tender.
2.0474 shares has been offered by the telco for every share held in Carso Global Telecom, giving it a 59.4% stake in Mexico’s largest fixed-line carrier Telefonos de Mexico SAB and 60.7% of South American carrier Telmex Internacional.

The rest of Telmex Internacional is also seeked to be acquired by the wireless giant by offering minority shareholders 0.373 America Movil share or MXN11.66 in cash, for each Telmex Internacional share.

82.48 billion pesos ($6.55 billion) would have to be paid by telco in the event all of Telmex Internacional’s minority shareholders were to opt for cash. Delisting of Carso Global Telecom and Telmex Internacional from the stock exchanges is also in America Movil’s plan while Telmex will remain a stand-alone, publicly traded company.

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Etisalat eyes expansion across six markets

On 02.23.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Six countries across the Middle East and North Africa are currently in the eyes of UAE-based telecoms operator Emirates Telecommunication Corporation (Etisalat). Iraq, Libya, Lebanon, Oman, Syria and Morocco have been targeted by the company as markets with low penetration levels in which the UAE firm could acquire either a license or a telecoms operator.

According to the telco’s chairman, Mohammad Hassan Omran, Etisalat is in an excellent position financially and operationally to capitalize on these opportunities.

The company has also said it is targeting majority stakes in its subsidiaries and associates for greater operational and financial synergy.

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30 operators pre-qualify Mexican mobile license bid

On 02.19.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The bid for Mexican mobile license has attracted applications from over 30 operators who have submitted the required documents. It was announced by Cofetel at mid-January that 93 companies acquired the bid documents for the mobile license tender launched on January 6.

However, only 30 have presented the required documentation to demonstrate their technical and financial capacity to participate in the tender process. 120 MHz spectrum in the 1.7 and 1.9 GHz frequency bands will be auctioned by Mexican telecoms regulator Cofetel.

Around 13 companies pre-qualified for the 1.7 GHz frequency band tender and 17 operators filed for the 1.9 GHz spectrum tender. Operators receiving Cofetel’s authorization will have to submit their formal bids on 25 May.

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Indosat might be acquired by XL Axiata (Indonesia)

On 02.19.10, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Indonesia’s second largest mobile operator, Indosat might be acquired by XL Axiata by the end of 2010. Strong subscriber and revenue growth has been aimed by XL Axiata this year and it has also been confirmed by the company that dividend payments were likely to resume this year following a return to profit in 2009.

86.5% of XL Axiata is owned by Malaysia’s Axiata Group and 13.3% is owned by Etisalat of the UAE while the remaining 0.2% is publicly held.

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Telkom may acquire stake in troubled Bakrie Telecom (Indonesia)

On 12.04.09, In Mobile, By Editor

www.WirelessFederation.com/news: PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom), Indonesia’s dominant telecommunication group plans to acquire a stake in rival telco Bakrie Telecom.

In order to settle debts of more than USD1.2 billion, Indonesian family-run business group Bakrie & Brothers announced in October 2008 that it was looking to sell stakes in several of its major subsidiaries. Telkom’s announcement confirmed the speculations regarding the ownership of the company and its financial trouble for more than a year.

However, according to a report by CommsUpdate, the group’s Esia brand of wireless communication products and services is planning to merge with or buy other rival telecom companies in 2010. The company has taken this move to deal with competition in the market which the company describes as an intense one.

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