Iliad is in talks with US TV providers including Dish Network, Cox Communications and Charter Communications, which could be interested in a joint bid for T-Mobile as they seek to enter the US mobile market, according to the report. Iliad is also talking to infrastructure and pension funds such as Ontario Teachers Pension Plan and sovereign wealth funds including Singapore's GIC, said the sources. Earlier this year, GIC and OTPP demonstrated their interest in mobile investments when they agreed to back France's third mobile operator, Bouygues Telecom, in its failed bid for SFR.
Iliad's discussions with potential partners are preliminary and could still fail, two of the sources said. Iliad's billionaire founder and majority-owner Xavier Niel earlier told the Wall Street Journal that the firm would be open to team up with partners: "If there are people that want to accompany us, we are open."
