Vodafone moves east
Vodafone stepped up its expansion into Eastern Europe today with a double deal for mobile phone operators in the Czech Republic and Romania.
The Newbury-based group said it was paying €3.5bn (€2.6bn) to take control of Czech operator Oskar and Romanian counterpart MobiFon.
The acquisition from Canadian telecoms group Telesystem International Wireless gives it a firm footprint in markets with a combined population of around 32 million.
Chief executive Arun Sarin said: “These acquisitions will create value for our shareholders and be good for our customers.
“They are also consistent with our stated strategy of increasing investment in Central and Eastern Europe.”
Vodafone has a direct presence in the German, Hungarian and Greek mobile phone markets and has partnerships with operators in Croatia, Austria and Slovenia. These alliances allow customers to roam abroad while increasing awareness of its brand.
The acquisition of Oskar means Vodafone will enter the Czech market for the first time with a market share of approximately 17%, or 1.8 million customers.
Oskar is the third-largest operator in the Czech Republic but generates a higher average revenue per user than its rivals and an annual turnover of $552m (€414.7) , which is rising 35% year-on-year.
Today’s deal for MobiFon will see Vodafone take a 79% stake in the company to the 20% shareholding it already owns.
MobiFon has 4.9 million customers and a market share of around 48% in a country where nearly half the population own a mobile phone. Sales have grown by 30% annually and now total $723m (€543m).
