NEW YORK-Cingular Wireless L.L.C. is one step closer to making a formal bid for AT&T Wireless Services Inc. as the Wall Street Journal reported Cingular’s parent companies SBC Communications Inc. and BellSouth Corp. have granted their wireless subsidiary approval to place a bid ahead of AWS’ self-imposed Feb. 13 bidding deadline.
Cingular reportedly has already placed an informal $30 billion offer for AWS, which would place an approximately $11 per share value for AWS’ stock price that was trading at just over $11 per share early Thursday.
Competing bids are expected to be placed by NTT DoCoMo Inc., which currently owns 16 percent of AWS and earlier this week removed itself from any internal AWS decisions on a possible sale, as well as Vodafone Group plc. Heightening a possible bid from Vodafone were comments from Verizon Communications Inc. claiming it would not oppose Vodafone’s attempt to divest its 45-percent stake in Verizon Wireless, noting “We certainly would not shy away from wanting to own 100 percent of Verizon Wireless.”
Deutsche Telekom AG, which owns T-Mobile USA Inc., quashed rumors it was also looking at making a bid for AWS, noting it was not looking to increase its ownership in the U.S. market and that its current position would likely profit from consolidation in the market.
“To put it clearly: We are not in acquisition mode,” DT chief executive Kai-Uwe Ricke told reporters at a DT event in Berlin.
