Deutsche Telekom isn’t talking about Sprint bid report
Although Deutsche Telekom is sticking to its policy of declining to comment on rumors, it pointed to a recent report that talk of a bid for Sprint Nextel Corp. is overblown. The Telegraph, a United Kingdom newspaper, reported over the weekend that Deutsche Telekom (NYSE: DT) had hired Deutsche Bank as an adviser for a possible bid for Sprint, which could come in a few weeks. The paper cited unnamed sources. In a Tuesday e-mail, a spokewoman for the German company echoed the company’s position that it does not comment on “rumors and speculations.” However, the message referred, “for your radar,” to a CNBC story that reports bankers and lawyers close to Sprint as saying they weren’t aware of any talks with Deutsche Telekom. Sprint has been the target of acquisition rumors over the past couple years as its stock price dipped. Sprint (NYSE: S) stock closed on Monday at $4.15, up 38 cents, or 10 percent, on volume of 244 million shares, according to Yahoo Finance. The stock’s average daily volume the past three months was 43 million shares. The stock closed on Tuesday at $4.06, down 9 cents, or 2.2 percent, on volume of 86 million shares. The stock’s average daily volume the past three months is 45.3 million shares. Overland Park-based Sprint is the nation’s No. 3 wireless carrier, with about 49 million subscribers; T-Mobile is No. 4, with about 33.5 million subscribers. The two largest U.S. carriers are Verizon Wireless (NYSE: VZ), which has about 88 million subscribers, and AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), which has about 80 million subscribers. Read more at http://kansascity.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2009/09/14/daily14.html?ana=yfcpc
AT&T Delays Acquisition Of Centennial Communications
AT&T has further delayed its acquisition of regional telecom operator Centennial Communications which is now expected to conclude in fourth-quarter 2009. The acquisition was originally set to close by second-quarter 2009 but was delayed to third-quarter 2009 in July 2009. The deal is pending regulatory clearances of the Department of Justice and Federal Communications Commission and other closing conditions. Read more at http://www.dailymarkets.com/stocks/2009/09/15/att-delays-acquisition-of-centennial-communications/
Digicel acquires France Telecom’s Dominica unit
By the Associated Press
Jamacia-based mobile phone company Digicel said Monday it has acquired France Telecom’s cellular operation in Dominica, leaving the small Caribbean island with just two wireless companies. Digicel said in a statement that it had completed the acquisition of Orange Dominica but did not disclose terms or say how many new customers it would add. The company will be switching Orange Dominica’s customers to its network over the next several days, spokeswoman Antonia Graham said. Dominca, one of the poorest and least developed islands in the Caribbean, has a population of about 73,000. Its other mobile phone company is LIME, previously known as Cable & Wireless Ltd. Digicel entered the market in 2006. Digicel has its corporate offices in Jamaica but is incorporated in Bermuda. The privately held company is majority owned by its founder, Irish businessman Denis O’Brien, and claims 8 million subscribers in the Caribbean and Central America. Read more at http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2009/09/14/business-mobile-telecommunications-cb-dominica-digicel-france-telecom_6884528.html
DoCoMo to sell stake in Malaysia’s U Mobile
TOKYO (Reuters) – NTT DoCoMo, Japan’s biggest mobile operator, will sell its 16.5 percent stake in cell phone company U Mobile this month, pulling out of the Malaysian market. The move follows South Korean partner KT Freetel’s sale of its 16.5 percent stake in U Mobile earlier this year, which analysts said was due to lowered expectations for growth for the Malaysian company. U Mobile entered the Malaysian cell phone market in the spring of 2008, providing 3G services to customers with technological assistance from DoCoMo and others. But it has been unable to take market share away from larger carriers. NTT DoCoMo, which had hoped the stake would help it bring in new revenue streams, plans to sell to U Mobile’s parent U Television for $100 million — the same amount it paid for the stake last year. NTT DoCoMo, which competes with KDDI Corp and Softbank Corp in the saturated Japanese cell phone market, has been seeking footholds in other parts of Asia to grow. It has bought stakes in India’s Tata Teleservices and in Axiata’s Bangladesh unit. Shares in NTT DoCoMo closed down 0.7 percent prior to the announcement, which had been well-flagged by Japanese media, in line with KDDI’s 0.2 percent fall but outperforming Softbank’s 1.5 percent decline. Read more at http://www.reuters.com/article/innovationNews/idUSTRE58E1RC20090915
Etisalat bids for Millicom Sri Lanka
Emirates Telecommunications (Etisalat) said on Monday it had submitted a binding offer on September 4 to buy a 100 per cent share in Millicom Sri Lanka. The statement on Abu Dhabi’s bourse website did not give further details and the United Arab Emirates company, which operates in 18 countries, was not immediately available for comment. “Etisalat is in Pakistan and Afghanistan and is about to launch in India so this deal would make sense and would be an extension of its footprint, but we need more details on the bid and there are other players involved,” said Simon Simonian, Shuaa Capital telecoms analyst. Mr Simonian said emerging markets such as Sri Lanka offered low penetration and high growth potential, but were more difficult to operate in than developed markets such as Europe. “Etisalat has developed expertise in building networks and running operations in emerging markets,” said Mr Simonian. Etisalat, second in market value among Arab telecoms companies behind Saudi Telecom, has also made a bid for a Libyan licence and is keen to expand abroad amid stiff competition at home. In November, Etisalat said it had more than $3bn in cash to fund purchases in 2009. The news weighed on Etisalat shares, down 1.7 per cent in early morning trade, extending losses after equalling a 10-month closing high on Thursday. The Abu Dhabi-based telecom company is 60 per cent owned by the UAE government. Last year, Etisalat bought a 45 per cent stake in new Indian operator Swan Telecom for about $900m. Read more at http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/90e8f0be-a1c3-11de-81a6-00144feabdc0.html?ftcamp=rss&nclick_check=1
