Carphone dialling up a deal for Tiscali

UK based retail outfit the Carphone Warehouse is reported to have made a £250m offer for the UK business of Italian ISP Tiscali.

The possibility of such a move has generated plenty of speculation over the past two years. Tiscali has for some time been looking to raise substantial cash with two goals in mind: either investment  in the Italian market, where there is still enormous growth potential, or in alternative markets where there is significantly more growth potential than in the UK.

Analysts at investment firm Execution said that the rumoured £250m price tag “would be a good price,” although the researchers noteed that: “The offer is well below the range apparently sought by Tiscali, but the company is on its knees and may have little option but to accept.”

There is a chance of a counter bid by Sky, which could inflate the price, but Execution said it cannot see Carphone paying any more than £300m.