Telekom CEO warns against Vodafone acquisition of Unitymedia

Source: Xinhua | 2018-05-10

Deutsche Telekom chief executive officer (CEO) Tim Hoettges criticized plans by British Vodafone Group to acquire the German Liberty Global subsidiary Unitymedia on Wednesday.

Speaking during a telephone conference, Hoettges warned that regulatory approval for purchase of broadband internet supplier Liberty Global, including its German subsidiary Unitymedia, for 18.4 billion euros (21.8 billion U.S. dollars) would be tantamount to a "re-monopolization" of the cable-market in Germany. The CEO of Europe's largest telecommunications company vowed to personally fight against the "competition distorting transaction" on behalf of consumers.

Hoettges highlighted that the deal would create a new "gigantic" competitor to Deutsche Telekom which could offer a package deal of broadband internet, cable telephone and cable TV services. His own company was forced to divest from its cable TV business on the grounds of antitrust concerns during the liberalization of the German telecommunications market in the 1990s.

A former government-owned asset, Deutsche Telekom was privatized in 1995 and subsequently listed on the Dax stock exchange. The Bonn-based company employs more than 217,000 employees across the world and recorded total revenue of 79.4 billion euros in 2017.