The head of Deutsche Telekom’s (DT) German business has said the incumbent is closely monitoring the country’s cable market and is open to buying up smaller operators.
Niek Jan van Damme, managing director of Telekom Deutschland, made the comments…
The head of Deutsche Telekom’s (DT) German business has said the incumbent is closely monitoring the country’s cable market and is open to buying up smaller operators.
Niek Jan van Damme, managing director of Telekom Deutschland, made the comments in an interview with German business weekly Focus, which noted that Primacom and Tele Columbus were possible targets.
Van Damme was keen to stress that the footprint of any potential target and its match with his company would be crucial.
DT was reported to have bid for Leipzig-based Primacom during a sale process two years ago. However, Primacom’s parent company, Medfort, decided to hold on to the operator in September 2012 after bidders were not willing to match its asking price.
Last November, Primacom rejected an unsolicited takeover offer from larger rival Tele Columbus and said it envisages itself as a buyer rather than a seller in any in-market consolidation deal. In March this year, Primacom acquired smaller rival DTK Deutsche Telekabel in the latest deal in the German cable market. In 2013, it also snapped up Sy-Fra Antennentechnik, another smaller operator.
For its part, Tele Columbus is pursuing an IPO. It confirmed it was exploring a listing in early July and is rumoured to have hired Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan to advise on the process.
The activity from the smaller operators follows Vodafone’s €7.7bn purchase of Kabel Deutschland last year and Liberty Global’s €3.2bn merger of its local subsidiary, Unitymedia, with KabelBW.
Separately, van Damme said DT would need a €25bn contribution from the government to expand its high-speed DSL broadband nationwide. The company would need €10bn to reach 90% of the population and a further €15bn to connect the final 10% who live in rural areas.
