Efem Nkanga With Agency Reports
6 October 2008
Lagos — The MTN Group has acquired 100 percent of Cote d'Ivoire's second fixed-line operator, Arobase Telecom, and Afnet, an Internet Service Provider ISP.
MTN Group's president and CEO, Phuthuma Nhleko according to IDG News service disclosed that the 100 percent acquisition of Arobase and Afnet which follows similar acquisitions by MTN in Nigeria , Cameroon and South Africa, reflects the progress MTN is making toward consolidating its business.
Nhleko added that the Afnet and Arobase acquisition will add value to MTN and support its strategy to ensure that the group is well-positioned to benefit from a rapidly converged technology market.
He also added that the expansion is in line with MTN's strategy to provide integrated communications solutions in all of its markets
Nhleko disclosed that Arobase Telecom was incorporated in 2001 and signed a concession agreement with the state of Cote d'Ivoire that allows it to offer data services using fiber-optic, wireless local loop and CDMA technologies.
He added that Afnet established in 1997 is one of the leading ISPs in Ivory Coast and offers wireless broadband technology and data services to the public. He emphasised that with Afnet, MTN will benefit from a solid corporate subscriber base.
Nhleko, had in August disclosed that MTN was working at acquiring more companies in the next two to three years in its bid to achieve its target of becoming the leading mobile phone operator in emerging markets. The MTN Group had in 2006 acquired Investcom, a Middle East mobile operator, for $5.5bn. While MTN Nigeria had in 2007 acquired VGC communications for 650 million dollars in a bid to effectively roll out its fixed line operations in a bid to meet the demands of the Nigerian market.
MTN had of recent been involved in several botched merger talks with the most recent being its current attempts to merge with Telecom Italia .
The bid by MTN to acquire more operators is predicated on its desire to be the biggest operator in Africa especially in line with growing competition posed by operators in its African and Middle Eastern markets, that led to the declaration of a reduced profit margin in the first half of its 2008 results.
It will be recalled that MTN has had unfruitful merger talks first Bharti Airtel , India's largest telecom company which hit the rocks following the pull out of Bharti from the merger that stakeholders had predicted would have created the world's biggest telecoms network.
Then second was with another Indian telecoms company, Reliance Communications which was said to have failed due to a family feud between the two brothers who control the company.
Hardly had the dust of that failed negotiation settled than new reports came up in Italian papers suggesting that an Italian mobile phone company, Telecom Italia was considering making a bid for MTN.
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