Grupo Iusacell files for bankruptcy again (Mexico)
Grupo Iusacell, struggling Mexican mobile network operator, has filed for pre-arranged bankruptcy and is looking for a second restructuring of its debt with creditors in just four years.
A judge may rule on whether to instigate bankruptcy proceedings next week, Gricelda Nieblas, head of the Federal Institute of Bankruptcy Specialists, a part of the judicial branch.
Billionaire owner, Salinas Pliego acquired 74% of Iusacell in 2003 for $7.4 million from Verizon Communications and Vodafone Group, assuming the debt in the process, but has struggled since then to turn the company around and has previously restructured the debt to reduce its servicing costs on the company.
The company delisted from the Mexican stock exchange at the start of this year. The company hasn’t reported any financial results since then, although its last financial statement confirmed that its subscriber base reached 3.6 million at the end of 2009.
Hawaiian Telcom emerges from Bankruptcy
Hawaiian Telcom has officially emerged from bankruptcy on Thursday, concluding two years of bankruptcy proceedings.
According to the company, it exited bankruptcy today with $300 million in debt. The Hawaii Public Utilities Commission, the last group needed to sign off, approved the Chapter 11 reorganization plan for the Honolulu-based company on Sept. 22.
The company’s reorganization reduces its debt by more than $850 million, or 74%. It retains $300 million of debt.
According to the Chief Executive Officer, Eric Yeaman, as was their goal, the company has significantly reduced the debt through the Chapter 11 process and have emerged a much stronger, more financially secure company better positioned to address the growth opportunities as the leading communications provider in the Hawaii marketplace.
As per the company, it is now been governed by a new board of directors, and retaining its management team, it is positioned to be more competitive in the changing telecommunications market. It has invested in its advanced fiber optic network and launched a new consumer portal, hawaiiantel.net, which combines e-mail, voice mail, streaming capabilities for music and video and weather and sports feeds.
Willcom declares bankruptcy (Japan)
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The bankruptcy protection with ¥206bn ($2.3bn) in debt has been announced by Japanese mobile phone company Willcom.
apan’s fourth-largest provider of mobile phone and wireless data services has been burdened with heavy debts, and has been struggling to expand its subscriber base amid fierce competition in the wireless market.
The aim of the company is to restructure the business under the supervision of the state-backed agency, the Enterprise Turnaround Initiative Corp of Japan which is also overseeing the bankruptcy process of Japan Airlines and filed for bankruptcy in January with $26bn of debt.
60 percent of Willcom is owned by private equity firm Carlyle.
No bankruptcy for T-2 (Slovenia)
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Slovenian alternative telco T-2′s bankruptcy has been terminated by the District Court in Maribor after the withdrawal of the proposal for the start of bankruptcy proceedings.
The decision was taken even after incumbent telco Telekom Slovenije and Lokainvest announced to participate in the proceedings as the proposal was automatically withdrawn by these two creditors.
Airwaves sale grosses $13.9 billion
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. sale of airwaves for advanced wireless services grossed a record $13.9 billion when it ended on Monday, and spectrum-hungry wireless carrier T-Mobile USA, Verizon Wireless and a group of cable companies were the highest bidders.
The Federal Communications Commission sale of 1,122 licenses began on August 9 and ended after no bids or withdrawals in the 161st round. While 168 bidders qualified to participate, 104 stayed in the bidding and won 1,087 licenses.
The U.S. Treasury will net about $13.7 billion from the FCC sale because the agency gives discounts of up to 25 percent to smaller companies to encourage their participation. Payments will likely be due next month.
The winning companies are expected to use the airwaves to expand and improve existing voice services as well as expand their high-speed Internet and video services. There are about 219 million wireless subscribers in the United States.
“Although we cannot envision our lives without access to the Internet, I believe we are only beginning to imagine the way mobile broadband networks will impact our lives — changing the business and entertainment possibilities available to consumers,” FCC Chairman Kevin Martin said.
The traditional wireless carriers faced tough competition in the auction from television providers, including the top U.S. cable and satellite companies like Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) and DirecTV Group Inc.
The companies are competing to offer consumers a package of traditional and wireless telephone, television and high-speed Internet services, which often command well over $100 a month and are viewed as highly profitable to providers.
Some of the airwaves sold in the auction are now being used by government agencies and it will likely take three to four years for the agencies to stop using them. The costs of the transition, about $936 million, will be covered by proceeds from the sale.
In a 2001 sale, the FCC had grossed $17.6 billion but most of it was voided after a court ruled that almost all the licenses sold were improperly taken back from a company in bankruptcy protection, NextWave Telecom.
KEY FOR T-MOBILE, CABLE PROVIDERS
Winning more airwaves was crucial for T-Mobile, the No. 4 U.S. provider and a unit of Germany’s Deutsche Telekom AG , because it has less airwaves in the top markets than its larger competitors.
T-Mobile won 120 licenses with bids of almost $4.2 billion, which includes regional licenses that cover large portions of the United States as well as individual licenses for key markets like New York, Chicago and San Francisco.
Another top bidder was a consortium of major U.S. cable providers — Comcast, Time Warner Inc. (TWX) and Cox Communications — teamed up with the No. 3 wireless carrier, Sprint Nextel Corp.
The group, named SpectrumCo LLC, won 137 licenses with bids of $2.4 billion, including airwaves that cover the northeastern United States and Washington D.C., Detroit, and Atlanta, among other cities.
“At a minimum, it’s going to benefit SpectrumCo because they made a very aggressive showing in this auction as well as smaller guys, but everyone will be constrained by the relocation process,” said Jessica Zufolo, an analyst with Medley Global Advisors.
However, not all television providers stayed in the game. A joint venture of rival satellite providers, DirecTV and EchoStar Communications Corp. (DISH), dropped out after a few days of bidding despite making the largest deposit of all bidders ahead of the sale.
Cingular Wireless and Verizon Wireless, the top two U.S. wireless providers, also were other top bidders in the sale.
Source- http://money.iwon.com
Technorati : Cingular, Mobile, T-Mobile, USA, Verizon Wireless
Ice Rocket : Cingular, Mobile, T-Mobile, USA, Verizon Wireless
