Vodafone keen on Liberty’s ‘assets’
Print Edition
VODAFONE, the world’s second-biggest mobile telecoms company, said yesterday it was in talks with Europe’s largest cable operator, Liberty Global, about an exchange of “selected assets” but was not discussing a full-blown merger.
“Vodafone is not in discussions with Liberty Global concerning a combination of the two companies,” the company said in a statement responding to media speculation.
Liberty Global, which has operations in 12 European countries including Britain, Germany and the Netherlands, has a market capitalization of US$46 billion, while Vodafone’s is 66 billion pounds (US$102 billion).
Vodafone did not say yesterday which businesses were being discussed.
“There is no certainty that any transaction will be agreed, nor is there certainty with respect to which assets will ultimately be involved,” Vodafone said.
However, a banker said he believed that Vodafone’s primary interest is in acquiring Liberty’s UK arm Virgin Media, while the main attraction for Liberty is Vodafone’s German cable business.
Liberty, which already owns Unitymedia, Germany’s second-biggest cable operator, has long coveted its bigger rival Kabel Deutschland, which Vodafone bought in 2013 for US$10 billion.
Meanwhile Vodafone in the UK is facing the rapid convergence of fixed line and mobile markets.
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