The CEO of Telekom Austria has said the company will remain in its current markets and is open to acquisitions, believing consolidation in Europe is necessary.
Speaking at a press conference on the company’s H1 2013 results, Hannes Ametsreiter said…
The CEO of Telekom Austria has said the company will remain in its current markets and is open to acquisitions, believing consolidation in Europe is necessary.
Speaking at a press conference on the company’s H1 2013 results, Hannes Ametsreiter said there are no plans at present to exit difficult markets. Acquisitions within the core South Eastern European market are a possibility, he said, adding that any outside that region are unlikely.
The CEO noted that the company plans to continue with its convergence strategy, which in H1 this year saw it complete its acquisition of no-frills brand Yesss! from Orange in Austria and purchase of cableco Digi TV and three fixed net providers in Croatia.
No comment on America Movil
Ametsreiter declined to comment on speculation that Telekom Austria could become a takeover target of shareholder America Movil (AMX).
This follows the Mexican telco’s announcement last week that it intends to offer about €7.2bn to acquire 70% of shares in Dutch telco KPN that it does not already own.
Explaining its reasons for the intended offer on Friday, Carlos Slim’s AMX drew attention to its expansion strategy outside the Americas, prompting speculation that Telekom Austria, in which it bought a 22.76% stake last year, could be next.
Telekom Austria posted revenues of €2.09bn for H1 2013, down 1.2% year-on-year. EBITDA was down 8.1% to €667.2m. The company claimed the regulatory burden on revenues and EBITDA amounted to €47.1m and €28.6m respectively.
“The operating markets of Telekom Austria Group in Central and Eastern Europe continue to be marked by a highly competitive landscape, a very challenging macroeconomic environment and strong regulatory burdens with regard to roaming tariffs and mobile termination rates,” the company said in a statement on the results.
