Fastweb, Iliad vying for Wind, 3 Italia assets - report

News Wireless Italy 24 JUN 2016
Fastweb, Iliad vying for Wind, 3 Italia assets - report
VimpelCom and CK Hutchison have potential deals in place with broadband provider Fastweb and Xavier Niel’s Iliad to establish a new mobile operator in Italy, according to an unnamed source cited by the Financial Times. The news appears to confirm previous reports indicating that Wind and 3 Italia, the Italian subsidiaries of VimpelCom and CK Hutchison, have offered to sell assets including 8,000 network sites, frequencies and a roaming deal to create a fourth mobile operator in Italy and convince EC regulators to approve their proposed merger.

The companies are waiting for European antitrust authorities to express their view this week before deciding which would be the best fit for the deal, said the FT’s source. Another person briefed on the plans said the offers from Fastweb and Iliad are similar in financial terms, meaning a decision could hinge on which would be most disruptive to the merged Wind-3 Italia group. Fastweb has confirmed its interest in the assets, with parent company Swisscom telling the FT that “we are interested in the remedies out of the potential merger as long as it further strengthens our mobile position in the Italian market."

The deal will begin at an initial 5,400 of a total 8,000 mobile towers capable of covering most of the Italian population, plus around 35MHz of spectrum across a range of mobile bands, said the report. The EC’s anti-trust authority is due to issue its decision on the merger on 08 September after regulators expressed concerns that the tie-up could lead to higher prices and less choice for mobile customers in Italy.

Categories:

Mobile

Companies:

Swisscom,  Wind,  Fastweb,  Iliad,  Vimpelcom,  3 Italia

Countries:

Italy

Tags:

M&A buyouts & divestments

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