Russian telco Mobile TeleSystems (MTS) and Dutch-based operator group VimpelCom have announced a partnership to develop and share LTE networks in Russia and the CIS region. The agreement involves rolling out LTE in 36 Russian regions over the next two years.
Amsterdam-based carrier group VimpelCom and its investment vehicle Global Telecom Holding said Tuesday they have agreed to exit the Canadian market. The companies will offload their stake in Wind Canada to the controlling shareholder of the operator for C$135m.
Amsterdam headquartered carrier VimpelCom, which operates in Russia and the CIS and owns stakes in several other operations around the world, has appointed Rene Schuster as Group Chief Operating Officer, effective immediately.
The French and Italian mobile markets could both be on the verge of significant consolidation, according to reports from news agency Reuters. In France incumbent telco Orange has set two investment banks to investigate the potential takeover of rival Bouygues, while talks have resumed between Hutchison and Vimpelcom, which own 3 Italia and Wind respectively, about a potential merger. In both instances Reuteurs cited unnamed sources close to the situation.
Amsterdam-headquartered operator Vimpelcom, which has operations in Russia, the CIS as well as Algeria, Bangladesh, Italy and Pakistan, has reported a 90 per cent year-on-year dive in net profit for the first quarter of 2014. Revenue was down ten per cent to $5.02bn, while profit for the quarter sat at $39m, down from $408m for the first quarter of 2013.
European operator group TeliaSonera has announced that two of its Dutch holding companies, TeliaSonera UTA Holding and TeliaSonera Uzbek Telecom Holding, are subject to a preliminary investigation concerning bribery and money laundering. The firm said that its operations in Uzbekistan are among the holdings of the entities.
European operator group VimpelCom has announced that it has received a letter from the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) requesting documents and stating that it is conducting an investigation into the firm’s operations. The group’s headquarters in Amsterdam were also visited this week by representatives of the Dutch authorities, including the Dutch public prosecutor office, which informed VimpelCom that it is the focus of a criminal investigation in the Netherlands.
The director general of the GSMA, Anne Bouverot, has sent an open letter to EC Commissioner Neelie Kroes calling for policy reform that will encourage investment in Europe’s telecoms sector. Bouverot secured endorsements from the CEOs of ten European operators with a combined European mobile customer base of almost three quarters of a billion subscriptions, according to data from Informa’s World Cellular Investors service.
European operator group VimpelCom has posted a $1.4bn net loss as well as a two per cent decline in revenue for the full year 2013. The operator blamed the impact of regulation, market slowdown and non-cash impairments related to operations in Ukraine and Canada for the poor performance.
The former CEO of VimpelCom and Telekom Austria, Boris Nemsic, has gone back to his engineering roots, reappearing this week as chairman of the board of Cellwize, a Self Organizing Networks (SON) specialist.
European operator group VimpelCom has selected infrastructure vendor NSN to supply equipment for its LTE radio access network in some regions of Russia. NSN has signed a five year deal covering central Russia, south Russia, Siberia and most of the Volga and Ural regions.
Canadian operator Wind Mobile has pulled out of the country’s 700MHz spectrum auction, due to a lack of internal support by key shareholder Vimpelcom.
Former CEO of telecoms trade association the GSMA Rob Conway has passed away, the trade body announced late Friday. He died on Thursday evening after a brief battle with an aggressive form of cancer.
European operator group VimpelCom has promoted its Russian chief to the group’s executive board; Anton Kudryashov will assume the role of chief group business development and portfolio officer from October 14, 2013.
Russian operator VimpelCom has poached the CFO of Verizon Wireless, Andrew Davies, and will install him as group CFO in January 2014.
Two of Russia’s largest mobile operators have ceased selling iPhone devices in the country due to the extensive marketing and financial support demanded by Apple. Second and third placed MTS and Megafon have already stopped advertising the device on their online shopping portals.
The boards of the world’s ten largest operators are dominated by executives with legal, financial and engineering backgrounds, resulting in a conservative culture that “struggles to drive and nurture innovation”, according to recruitment consultancy European Leaders.
European operator VimpelCom has launched LTE services in Moscow. The firm’s LTE FDD services are now accessible within the central Sadovoye Ring area of the city. The operator expects LTE services to be available throughout the Russian capital by the end of 2013.
Operator group VimpelCom, now headquartered in Amsterdam, said that it has agreed to offload its entire stake in Cambodian operation Sotelco to local investment partner Huot Vanthan.
Russian operator group Altimo has made a bid to acquire all shares in Egyptian counterpart Orascom Telecom Holding (OTH). The firm made an offer via the Egyptian Stock Exchange, and OTH said it learned about the offer through a notice published by Egypt’s Financial Supervisory Authority (EFSA).
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