America Movil asset sales
America Movil (AMX) has reportedly hired Bank of America to sell some of its assets. The telecommunications giant controlled by Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim needs to divest in order to comply with new Mexican regulations. Mexico’s new antitrust rules forbid companies from controlling more than 50% of the telecom market. America Movil has an estimated 70% of Mexico’s wireless subscribers and 80% of its landlines.
America Movil has an estimated 28,000 towers in Mexico, and the company said this summer that it would spin those towers off instead of selling them. Analysts expect the company to spin the towers off into a real estate investment trust.
It remains unclear exactly which assets Bank of America will sell on America Movil’s behalf, but presumably network equipment and wireless subscribers will need to change hands in order for the company to comply with the new law. Kevin Smithen of Macquarie Capital joins other analysts in predicting that AT&T will take a serious look at America Movil’s Mexican assets.
AT&T has a complex relationship with America Movil, having recently decided to sell its stake in that company. Satellite TV is one of America Movil’s business lines, and AT&T is trying to buy DirecTV. In Latin America, DirecTV and America Movil are direct competitors, so AT&T is selling its America Movil stake to make regulators happy. But the carrier could get right back into the Mexican telecom market by buying assets outright. This would not impact the DirecTV deal, since AT&T would be buying telecom and wireless assets, not satellite TV assets.
Is HP shopping?
Hewlett-Packard said during its most recent earnings announcement that management was in possession of “material, non-public information,” and analyst Simon Leopold of Raymond James and Associates surmises that this could be related to a possible acquisition.
Leopold notes that HP is sitting on $5 billion in cash and that “management has indicated its readiness and willingness to make acquisitions following a three-year hiatus that can only be described as an Autonomy hangover.”
Rackspace is one company that has often been named as a possible target for HP. Rackspace is the founder of OpenStack, an open-source operating system for cloud computing. HP recently announced plans to invest $1 billion in OpenStack-related software initiatives.
NATE to launch Tower Family Foundation
Next week at CTIA’s Super Mobility Week, the National Association of Tower Erectors will formally launch The Tower Industry Family Support Charitable Foundation (Tower Family Foundation). The 501 (c)(3) will provide financial assistance to family members of workers killed or injured working on communications towers.
Jim Tracy, CEO of Legacy Telecommunications, is the founder of the foundation. The Tower Family Foundation has an advisory board and a board of directors, and together these boards have established criteria, guidelines and application processes that will govern the distribution of donations.
Next week at CTIA, the group will announce a major donation that was made to establish the foundation. The official launch of the Tower Family Foundation will happen at an open reception September 10 at 5:15 pm in PMR Room 801 at the Sands Expo Center in Las Vegas.
