A Luxembourg-registered group has bought company stakes owned by fugitive Bulgarian tycoon Tsvetan Vassilev for €1, including 43 per cent in Bulgaria’s biggest telco Vivacom. Vassilev was at the centre of a scandal last year when a bank he majority-owned, Corporate Commercial Bank, was hit by a run on deposits and shut down. He was […]
BT is preparing to launch its own 4G network, even before it has completed the £12.5 billion takeover of EE. The telco will reportedly unveil its 4G service by this week, according to a report in The Telegraph, and will likely undercut many of its rivals. BT will initially launch its 4G service as a […]
BT has criticsed Ofcom for taking a ‘lopsided approach’ to the UK broadband market. On March 19th Ofcom confirmed it was going ahead with a new pricing rule, coming into effect on April 1st. The rule means BT must maintain a sufficient margin between its wholesale and retail superfast broadband fees, in order to allow […]
Telecom Italia has returned to profit for the first time in three years as Italy’s largest telecoms group begins its biggest investment to date to modernise its mobile and broadband networks. The group was on the way to becoming a “real public company”, according to chairman Giuseppe Recchi, following an overhaul of its broadband and […]
UK regulator Ofcom has confirmed it will push ahead with plans to monitor the price BT charges rivals to access its superfast fibre network after taking on board concerns from the European Commission. Peers such as TalkTalk have long complained that BT overcharges for wholesale access to its infrastructure, helping it fund additional services such […]
Orange has unveiled ‘Essentials2020’ – its new strategic plan to 2020, building on the Conquests 2015 five year plan launched in 2010. Orange says it will leverage five main drivers: Offering richer connectivity; Reinventing the customer relationship; Building a people-oriented and digital employer model; Accompanying the transformation of enterprise customers; and Diversifying by capitalizing on […]
Dailymotion, the online video portal owned by French telco Orange, is set to hold talks to sell a 49 per cent stake to Hong Kong-based telecom giant PCCW. PCCW has reportedly made an offer valuing the video site at about €250 million. The deal would bring in a long-desired foreign partner for the French company […]
UK comms regulator Ofcom has announced an overarching review of the nation’s digital communications markets, to ensure that communications providers and services continue to meet the needs of consumers and businesses. Ofcom’s Strategic Review of Digital Communications will examine competition, investment, innovation and the availability of products in the broadband, mobile and landline markets. By […]
US consumer advocacy body Consumers Union is heightening its opposition to the proposed merger of Comcast with Time Warner Cable by launching a new ad campaign in support of its efforts to see the deal rejected. It suggests that if the deal gets approved, Comcast would gain unprecedented control over what people see on TV […]
Numericable-SFR reported a 5 per cent slide in 2014 revenue emphasing the need to accelerate the fusion of the two businesses. Sales came in at €11.4 billion, France’s second-largest carrier behind Orange reported, citing pro-forma figures. Stripping out SFR, Numericable’s revenue and earnings jumped but interest payments led to a net loss of €175 million, […]