US satellite-broadcaster DirecTV is still in the race for Vivendi-owned GVT in Brazil.
Vivendi hired Rothschild and Deutsche Bank last year for the potential disposal of its Brazilian fixed line and broadband unit which it values at around €7bn.
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US satellite-broadcaster DirecTV is still in the race for Vivendi-owned GVT in Brazil.
Vivendi hired Rothschild and Deutsche Bank last year for the potential disposal of its Brazilian fixed line and broadband unit which it values at around €7bn.
At its Q4 earnings call yesterday, DirecTV senior VP of investor relations and financial planning Jonathan Rubin confirmed that the company is still considering options for a GVT bid.
He said DirecTV would consider “a wide variety of possibilities” with regards to the structure of a possible transaction. A final decision for or against a bid would depend on a number of factors, such as having “a clear understanding of the advantages GVT has in its own right, as well as brings to our core business”. Other factors include the financial impact of the deal, synergies, and the chances to fully integrate GVT with DirecTV’s own local operations, Sky Brazil.
Rubin said the company expects to come to a decision by the end of Q1 the latest.
DirecTV had first confirmed that it was looking at GVT in November last year.
GVT offers a hybrid of DTH and IPTV services, as well as broadband and fixed-line telephony. After growing rapidly over the past few years it now has roughly 400,000 pay-TV customers. An acquisition of GVT would enable DirecTV to offer triple play TV, broadband and fixed-line telephone services.
A report in late January suggested that private equity firms KKR and Apax are working on a joint offer that would rival DirecTV. However, DirecTV might be able to table a higher bid given the synergies a transaction would create for the broadcaster.
Investment bank BTG Pactual reportedly left the process in mid January.