Telecom Italia (TI) has decided not to pursue a tie-up with Hutchison Whampoa’s mobile unit 3 Italia.
The Italian incumbent issued a short statement after a board meeting today saying that, based on a management report, directors determined that “at…
Telecom Italia (TI) has decided not to pursue a tie-up with Hutchison Whampoa’s mobile unit 3 Italia.
The Italian incumbent issued a short statement after a board meeting today saying that, based on a management report, directors determined that “at present there are not the elements necessary to start negotiations”.
A Reuters report quoted board member Tarak Ben Ammar as saying the talks are “definitely finished” when asked whether they had merely been halted temporarily.
The Milan-based telco first confirmed it was in preliminary talks with Hong Kong-based Hutchison in early April and, in June, the board authorised an in-depth examination of the potential transaction. The TI board was expected to discuss the matter at a meeting in early June but postponed doing so until today’s meeting.
Prior to today’s announcement, there was considerable speculation that a deal would not eventuate. As well as being politically controversial, various local and international media reported that TI’s existing shareholders, including current largest shareholder Telco, were unsure about or opposed to the idea.
While a strict confidentiality agreement prevented TI and Hutchison from disclosing details of their talks, there was considerable speculation that a deal could have seen the Hong Kong company become TI’s largest shareholder.
At present, TI is also working on a plan to spin off its fixed-line assets into a new company.
At the time of writing, TI’s shares were up 1.34% to €0.528.
