On the heels of
the recent acquisition of Columbus International by CWC, Liberty Global is
seeking to acquire CWC for US $ 5.5 billion. Liberty Global presence in this region
is limited to Chile and Puerto Rico but most of the operations are centered in
Europe. With revenues of $18.2 billion it’s the largest
international cable company.
Liberty Global
has until 5:00 p.m. on November 19, 2015 to either announce a firm intention
to make an offer for CWC or announce that it does not intend to make an offer.
If Liberty Global decides to purchase then the
Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (TATT) and other Caribbean
regulators would have to review and approve before the acquisition can take
place. Once Liberty Global gets regulator approval, then the next steps will be optimization
of resources across territories, potential rebranding etc. Rolling forward a
year from now how does this impact the local landscape and will we see a similar
merger/acquisition between TSTT and Massy Communications?
Do you forsee MASSY purchasing the CWC shareholding in TSTT?
ReplyDeleteIt is a possibility however, Massy would firstly have to conduct its due diligence. Based on the results of this assessment a decision to purchase can be made. TSTT has has several jewels that make it attractive:
ReplyDelete1) Dominant in the landline market
2) Large customer base in Broadband, Security and Mobile
3) Strong Enterprise and Government Line of business
4) Fibre backbone
5) Experienced engineering staff
Concerns for any buyer would be:
1) High Personnel cost as a percentage of operational cost
2) Aging outside plant assets
3) Successor rights of the union
FInally, if i was Massy i would also seek management control in the first 3 years of acquiring any minority shareholding in TSTT. Cable and Wireless on acquiring the 49% was able to embed its own CEO, CFO, COO and CMO if my memory serves me correctly so one can expect the same demands at a minimum.