The new proposals are a response to pressure by minority investors such as Marco Fossati, whose Findim Group owns about 5 percent of Telecom Italia and who has accused the board of favouring Telefonica. Fossati sought to oust the current board in December by claiming that Telefonica might force a sale or break up of Telecom Italia’s Brazilian mobile unit TIM Brasil to further its own ends in the Latin American market. Although the board narrowly survived that attempt, Patuano evidently considered that the company had no choice but to make the governance changes required to give minority investors greater representation, and with yesterday’s unanimous vote he appears to have gone some way to healing divisions.
Under another of his proposals, the new chairman of Telecom Italia, to be elected at the 16 April shareholder meeting, will have to be independent from the biggest investors and represent the interests of all shareholders fairly, a development that was described by Telecom Italia’s association of small shareholders, Asati, as “very positive”. Current chairman Aldo Minucci has already said he will he will only serve in the position until a new board is chosen.
