Telkom South Africa’s oft-cited plan to ‘de-risk’ its loss-making mobile business could lead to a transaction with rival MTN, TechCentral reports, quoting ‘two separate and well-placed sources’. The discussions between the two parties remain ‘sensitive’ at this time however, and it is not clear what form a deal between the pair would take, or what hurdles it would face at the Competition Commission.
According to TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database, Telkom Mobile (formerly 8ta) was launched in October 2010 after Telkom disposed of its 50% stake in Vodacom. However, as the country’s fourth mobile entrant, behind MTN, Vodacom and Cell C, Telkom Mobile has struggled to compete effectively, and has yet to turn a profit.
25 Nov 2013
