AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands-KPN, the former telecommunications monopoly in the Netherlands, plans to offer a new issue of shares to the public this year. The Dutch government currently holds a 43.5-percent stake, which will be reduced through the sale, in KPN.Funds from the sale will...
NEW YORK-Merger and acquisition activity involving American companies shed some of its recent hyperactivity, slowing down last quarter to its lowest level since early 1998, Mergerstat L.P., Los Angeles, reported.Among companies releasing the dollar amount of their transactions, aggregate deal value dropped to $248.1...
MADRID, Spain-Telefonica Moviles and Terra Networks set up Terra Mobile, a new company charged with developing and operating the Telefonica group's global mobile Internet portal.Telefonica Moviles will control 51 percent of the new company, with Terra Networks controlling the remaining 49 percent.The Internet portal...
FRANKFURT, Germany-WorldCom Inc. formally pulled out of the German auction for third-generation licenses. The company is the third bidder to withdraw from the process before the auction officially begins July 31.France's Vivendi and Talkline, an SBC Communications Inc. and Tele Danmark joint venture, dropped...
GermanyWorldCom, Vivendi and Talkline, an SBC Communications and Tele Danmark joint venture, formally pulled out of the German auction for third-generation licenses, scheduled to begin 31 July. U.K. operator Orange also backed out of the Group 3G consortium, which also includes Telefonica and Sonera,...
Europe is embarking on a third-generation license auction frenzy the rest of this year, and operators are not happy about it.Since the United Kingdom raked in a whopping $35 billion earlier this year, other countries are moving away from the traditional method of granting...
Chase Manhattan Bank filed papers in the U.S. District Court in Delaware June 9 alleging 17 members of Iridium L.L.C. have not met any reserve capital call obligations that secure the $800 million loan Chase made to the now-bankrupt satellite company's subsidiary, Iridium Operating...
MADRID-Telefonica denied reports that a virus is getting into the mobile phones of its customers and sending rude messages about the company to phone screens.U.S. computer specialists reported a worm-type virus called "Timofonica" has hit customers of Telefonica's Movistar service. "Timo" means rip-off or...
WOODBURY, N.Y.-Comverse Network Systems, a division of Comverse Technology Inc., installed and launched systems enabling prepaid services for more than 1 million subscribers of Chilean mobile operator Telefonica Movil Chile.Comverse said the installation included prepaid services solutions at two Telefonica network sites near Santiago....
CAMPINAS, Brazil-Lucent Technologies Inc. provided Internet capabilities to the wireless companies owned by Telefonica S.A. in Brazil and Telesp Celular, a wireless operator covering the state of Sao Paulo.According to Lucent, the Wireless Application Protocol-based service will allow subscribers one-touch wireless access to a...
TOKYO-NTT DoCoMo Inc. announced it signed a memorandum of understanding with KPN Telecom, acquiring 15 percent of the voting rights in a newly formed holding company called KPN Mobile N.V. for about $4.5 billion. The announcement follows KPN's failed merger talks with Spain's Telefonica...
MILAN, Italy-The Italian government has proposed to use a two-stage process to award five Universal Mobile Telecommunications System licenses later this year. The proposal combines a "beauty contest" with an auction, with the government expecting to raise more than $11.2 billion.The first phase of...
KPN Telecom is said to be in discussions with Spain's Telefonica regarding a possible US$54 billion merger. At press time, international reports said the companies had agreed in principle to a deal that would evenly split control of the two entities. Such a merger...
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico-Celulares Telefonica Inc., a Puerto Rican wireless carrier, implemented Amdocs' Ensemble solution for customer care and billing to support all of its cellular and paging operations.
DUBLIN, Ireland-Utility companies across Europe are entering the mobile communications business, hoping to simultaneously grab a slice of an extremely lucrative market and diversify their operations. But analysts are undecided on whether the companies have the requisite technical expertise or resources to effectively compete...
KPN Telecom is said to be in discussions with Spain's Telefonica regarding a possible US$54 billion merger. At press time, international reports said the companies had agreed in principle to a deal that would evenly split control of the two entities. Such a merger...
SAO PAULO, Brazil-In early January, by starting operations as a "mirror" company of fixed-line carriers Telefonica and Telemar, Vesper faced a challenge in the Brazilian market. The company planned to compete with operators installed in 17 states, with an objective of ending the first...
MADRID, Spain-Telefonica reported reaching an agreement with Orange plc and Sonera Corp. to apply for the Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service license in Germany through a consortium in which Telefonica InterContinental S.A. will hold a 40-percent stake, with Orange and Sonera sharing the remaining 60...
Bidders in the U.K. third-generation license auction appeared to exceed their budgets last week. Bidding for the five licenses totaled an eye-popping $35 billion, and the auction will linger on into this week.The auction seems eerily reminiscent of the U.S. personal communications services C-block...
MADRID, Spain-Spain's Telefonica plans to spin off its mobile-phone business before the fall, published reports indicate.Analysts value the unit at as much as $71.3 billion. Telefonica reported about 9 million wireless subscribers in Spain and 10.5 million in Latin America at the end of...
WASHINGTON-With a U.S.-Cuban custody battle and U.S.-China trade dominating business in the nation's capital these days, the question arises: What are the prospects for future U.S.-Cuban telecom trade?The answer is not easy to come by, given the lack of full diplomatic ties between the U.S....
Skyrocketing bids forced five companies to drop out of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System auction last week, leaving eight companies to scramble for five licenses that now have a combined value of more than $22 billion.By the time round 106 was over, 3GUK, Crescent...
PARIS-The French government said it will issue this month calls for tender for four Universal Mobile Telecommunications System phone licenses, Reuters reported. The third-generation licenses will be granted through a "beauty contest."Three of the licenses are expected to be awarded to the country's incumbent...
Bids for each of the five Universal Mobile Telecommunications System licenses in the United Kingdom reached or topped $3 billion last week. All 13 original bidders are still are in the auction, now in its fifth week."I think it speaks volumes that of the...
