France Telecom’s local division does not plan to resell the spectrum it owns, according to the CEO of Orange Spain, Jean Marc Vignolles.
Vignolles told journalists that the operator is not interested in participating in the Ministry of Industry’s planned…
France Telecom’s local division does not plan to resell the spectrum it owns, according to the CEO of Orange Spain, Jean Marc Vignolles.
Vignolles told journalists that the operator is not interested in participating in the Ministry of Industry’s planned secondary market.
A spokeswoman for the company confirmed the comments, adding “Orange Spain is not interested in reselling because we are going to need all spectrum we have, as well as what we hope to win in the next tender due to take place in Spain”.
Next month’s 4G spectrum auction is set to raise E2bn for its government, with most of the frequencies coming from the digital dividend.
The country’s mobile operators are Telefonica, Vodafone and Orange, while cablecos Ono, Euskatel and R Cable are also expected to participate.
FT converts local loans
France Telecom is set to convert E4bn of loans to Orange Spain into shares, reducing its liabilities by 87% to E600m.
Local reports suggest the reason for the decision was the importance that FT gives to its Spanish business, its third largest market globally.
A spokesman for Orange Spain confirmed the conversion, but would not give any further comments.
Orange Spain is also reportedly facing tough competition from established players such as Telefonica’s Movistar and Vodafone.
Orange Spain is set to launch an MVNO called YouMobile to target Chinese people living in the country in June, following a partnership agreement with local holding group Hualon Geco z Publisher Grupo Prisa denied speculation that it has sold a stake to Mexican telecoms magnate Carlos Slim. Reports had suggested that Slim had acquired a stake of 2-3% in the group for around E20m.
