Vodafone Group is targeting to acquire Liberty Global
A news report in Bloomberg said Vodafone, which has exited from the U.S. telecom market, is exploring a combination with John Malone’s Liberty Global that would create Europe’s largest phone, Internet and TV company, worth more than $130 billion. Liberty owns Virgin Media in the U.K.
Vodafone, which recently announced Project Spring to enhance network quality, has concerns about the combined company’s debt levels and its own investors’ reaction to a deal.
The global telecom operator is stepping up expansion in the wake of UK telecom operator BT entered talks to purchase either Telefonica SA’s O2 unit or EE, the wireless carrier jointly owned by Orange and Deutsche Telekom.
Vodafone has added cable assets across Europe: Germany’s Kabel Deutschland Holding for $9.6 billion last year and Grupo Corporativo Ono SA of Spain.
Vodafone and Liberty compete to acquire European telecom assets. Liberty made an offer for Kabel Deutschland in May last year, before being outbid by Vodafone.
Baburajan K
editor@telecomlead.com
