It has been reported that Vodafone and Telefonica are looking at the possibility of acquiring Telecom Italia’s German broadband Internet business. The Hansenet division is also attracting the attention of other possible suitors although it is only Telefonica and Vodafone that have been asked to submit non-binding offers. The offers need to be in by 20 April at which point Telecom Italia will review the situation regarding a subsidiary which could be worth around $1.5 billion.
While Deutsche Telekom is the largest operator in the German mobile Internet market, either Vodafone or Telefonica would offer worthwhile competition in the long-term. The subsidiary currently has around 2.3 million broadband customers and would offer a very interesting add-on for anyone looking towards the mobile Internet market.
While the UK Internet market has fallen behind others in Europe there is no doubt that the likes of Vodafone and Telefonica are looking to expand across the globe. The opportunities open to the larger mobile broadband Internet companies are expanding on a monthly basis with a whole host of media companies looking towards broadband for the future. Whether Telefonica or Vodafone will eventually take over Hansenet remains to be seen but it appears that the Telecom Italia division is certainly “in play”.