Business Category

New Documents Suggest Fresh Evidence Of TeliaSonera Ties To Karimova
May 22nd 2013 - 07:45 GMT
Documents leaked to Swedish investigative journalists and reviewed by RFE/RL appear to offer fresh evidence of a link between Swedish telecom giant TeliaSonera and Gulnara Karimova, the daughter of the president of Uzbekistan....more

Moody's: Telecom Italia's Weak Q1 Results Reflect Challenges to Deliver Performance Targets
May 21st 2013 - 17:40 GMT
Telecom Italia's weak Q1 results reflect challenges it is facing to deliver operating performance targets and thereby maintain its current rating, says Moody's Investors Service....more

Dish Network Offers $2 Billion to Buy LightSquared's Radio Spectrum
May 21st 2013 - 17:05 GMT
Although it is bidding US$25 billion to buy a majority stake in Sprint Nextel, that hasn't stopped Dish Network from offering US$2 billion to pick up the radio spectrum assets held by bankrupt LTE wannabe LightSquared....more

Sprint Nextel Raises Its Offer to Buy Out Clearwire Shareholders
May 21st 2013 - 15:10 GMT
In a not entirely unexpected move, Sprint Nextel has raised the price it is willing to pay to buy out the minority shareholders in its Clearwire subsidiary....more

Apple Accused of Deploying Aggressive Tax Avoidance Tactics
May 21st 2013 - 10:33 GMT
Apple has been accused of trying to find the "Holy Grain" of tax avoidance schemes by a committee of US politicians who are investigating the company's tax affairs....more

India May Need More Legal Changes to Approve Vodafone Tax Settlement
May 21st 2013 - 10:00 GMT
The Indian government may need to modify two separate laws in order to be able to sign off on a negotiated settlement with Vodafone in its US$2.4 billion tax dispute....more

Sprint Nextel to Provide More Information to Dish Network
May 21st 2013 - 09:20 GMT
Sprint Nextel is to provide more information to Dish Network as it assesses the potential of its rival takeover bid for the company....more

Vodafone Profits Plunge 90% on Huge European Write-Downs
May 21st 2013 - 07:50 GMT
Vodafone Group has announced that its full year revenues fell by 4.2 percent, as the company was hurt by the weak Southern European market. Revenues for the full year came in at £44.45 billion (US$67.6 billion)....more

Sprint Nextel Buys Handmark and OneLouder Apps
May 20th 2013 - 15:25 GMT
USA based mobile network, Sprint Nextel has acquired one of the very early mobile app stores, ­Handmark and its subsidiary OneLouder Apps, a mobile app developer and advertising company....more

Vietnam's Viettel Eyes More Overseas Mobile Network Investments
May 20th 2013 - 14:15 GMT
The Vietnamese state-owned telecoms network operator, Viettel Group has confirmed that it is seeking further overseas investments in developing countries....more

Yahoo Pays $1.1 Billion in Cash to Buy Tumblr
May 20th 2013 - 13:40 GMT
USA based search engine website, Yahoo has confirmed rumours over the weekend and is to acquire the popular mini-blogging website, Tumblr....more

Vodacom Posts Sharp Rise in Full-Year Profits
May 20th 2013 - 13:05 GMT
South Africa based Vodacom has announced that its full year revenues rose by 4.5 percent to reach R59.34 billion (US$6.3 billion), mainly driven by growth in Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mozambique....more

Vodafone Pressured to Decide on Future of Verizon Stake
May 20th 2013 - 12:05 GMT
Vodafone shareholders are calling on the company to make a final decision about the future of its 45% stake in the USA's Verizon Wireless....more

Softbank in Talks to Buy Stake in Thai Mobile Network
May 20th 2013 - 09:15 GMT
Japan's Softbank is reportedly close to closing a deal that would see it take a minority stake in Thailand's state-owned mobile network operator, TOT....more

Fitch Affirms Telkomsel Debt Ratings: Outlook Stable
May 20th 2013 - 07:40 GMT
The company's solid credit profile is underpinned by operating EBITDAR margin of above 60%, conservative funds flow from operations (FFO)-adjusted net leverage of 0.2x and free cash flow (FCF) margin of over 10%....more

Aruba Networks Maps Out New Indoor Location-Based Services
May 19th 2013 - 10:05 GMT
Aruba Networks has announced the acquisition of privately-held Meridian Apps for an undisclosed amount....more

Syniverse Close to Securing Mach Takeover Approval
May 19th 2013 - 09:20 GMT
The planned takeover of roaming services provider, Mach by the privately owned Syniverse Technologies is expected to get approval from the European regulators....more

Deutsche Telekom Has Option to Sell T-Mobile USA Stake
May 17th 2013 - 13:55 GMT
Germany's Deutsche Telekom has confirmed that it could sell its stake in T-Mobile USA sooner than the 18 month lock-in that it agreed during the merger with MetroPCS....more

AirWatch Expands with $25 Million Investment from Accel Partners
May 17th 2013 - 12:21 GMT
Mobile security software vendor, AirWatch says that it has secured a US$25 million investment by Accel Partners.....more

India's Viom Networks Seeking Private Equity Investor Ahead of IPO
May 17th 2013 - 09:50 GMT
The Indian tower network operator, Viom Networks has confirmed that it is seeking a private equity investor as the company posted its first ever profit during the second half of last year....more

Telus Pays $380 Million to Put Struggling Rival Out of Its Misery
May 16th 2013 - 15:20 GMT
Consolidation in the Canadian mobile phone market as Telus has agreed to buy its much smaller rival, Mobilicity for C$380 million....more

Fitch Upgrades Rogers Communications' Debt Ratings
May 16th 2013 - 08:15 GMT
Fitch said that the ratings upgrade considers Rogers' consistent operating performance during the past several years as its business segments have scaled further, both organically and through acquisitions, resulting in a higher level of profitability and cash flows. ...more

Dish Network Raises $2.5 Billion for Sprint Nextel Takeover Bid
May 16th 2013 - 07:50 GMT
USA based Dish Network is seeking to raise US$2.5 billion in debt funding to contribute towards its US$25.1 billion offer to buy a majority stake in Sprint Nextel....more

MegaFon Boosts Revenues and Profits on Back of Higher Data Usage
May 15th 2013 - 09:00 GMT
Russian mobile network operator, MegaFon has reported a rise in both revenues and profits for its first-quarter, boosted by mobile data services which rose by 22.4% over the past year....more

Russia's VimpelCom Posts 28 Percent Rise in Quarterly Profits
May 15th 2013 - 08:35 GMT
Russia's VimpelCom has reported its financial results, and announced that first-quarter revenues were essentially flat compared to a year ago thanks largely to regulatory cuts in Italy, although the net profit rose by 28 percent....more

Egypt's Orascom Telecom Rejects Takeover Bid from Russia's Altimo
May 15th 2013 - 08:10 GMT
Orascom Telecom Holding's board of directors has decided to reject the offer from Russia's Altimo has launched a bid to buy the remainder of the company that it does not already own....more

SingTel Profits Fall by a Third on One-Off Items
May 15th 2013 - 07:25 GMT
Singapore's SingTel has posted a 33 percent fall in its fourth fiscal quarter thanks to a number of one-off events....more

Batelco Profits Fall on Weaker Performance in Home Market
May 14th 2013 - 17:00 GMT
Bahrain based Batelco has reported a 17 percent fall in its first quarter profits as the company was hurt by increased competition in its home market....more

Algerian Government Unhappy with Cost of Buying 51% Stake in Local Mobile Network
May 14th 2013 - 10:15 GMT
The Algerian government is seeking a fresh valuation on the local mobile network, Djezzy before it agrees to buy a 51% stake in the company....more

Alvarion Gets Less Than Expected from Sale of Carrier Licensed Division
May 14th 2013 - 09:50 GMT
Israel's Alvarion has completed the previously announced deal to sell its carrier licensed division to Telrad Networks, but for less than originally expected....more

Vodafone to Receive Surprise $3.2 Billion Dividend from Verizon Wireless
May 14th 2013 - 06:43 GMT
Verizon Wireless has agreed to make a surprise dividend payment to its two parent shareholders, in a move that may quell speculation about Verizon's intentions towards a buy out its minority partner....more

Israel's Cellcom Sees First-Quarter Profits Plunge by More Than 60%
May 13th 2013 - 14:50 GMT
Israeli mobile network operator, Cellcom has reported that its first-quarter revenues fell by 20.5 percent to NIS 1.,26 billion (US$345 million) as the company continued to suffer the effects of heightened competition and regulatory challenges....more

AsiaInfo-Linkage Agrees to Go Private Under Co-Founder Backed Deal
May 13th 2013 - 13:20 GMT
BSS/OSS software and services supplier, AsiaInfo-Linkage has announced that it is recommended a deal that will see it taken private again by its co-founder, and a consortium of private equity investors lead by CITIC Capital Holdings....more

Softbank Pressures Banks Not to Support Rival Bid for Sprint Nextel
May 13th 2013 - 10:50 GMT
Japan's Softbank has put pressure on banks not to agree to fund a rival takeover bid for Sprint Nextel. ...more

Fitch Revises Bharti Airtel's Outlook to Stable
May 13th 2013 - 10:00 GMT
Fitch Ratings has revised India-based Bharti Airtel's debt ratings outlook to Stable from Negative. Its Long-term Foreign Currency debt rating has been affirmed at 'BBB-'....more

India's BSNL Hires Advisors on Possible Splitting Off of Towers Network
May 13th 2013 - 09:35 GMT
India's state-owned mobile network operator, BSNL has hired KPMG to advise the company on a splitting off of its tower assets into a separate company....more

Contract to Boost UK's Rural Broadband Services Awarded to Controversial Bidder
May 13th 2013 - 09:15 GMT
A contract to improve mobile broadband coverage in rural areas across the UK has been awarded to a company that has been criticized after it was awarded to a company with a controversial tax minimization structure....more

US Politician Says Softbank Cannot Be Trusted with Sprint Nextel
May 11th 2013 - 17:42 GMT
A US politician has weighed into the Sprint Nextel takeover battle warning that the company should remain in American hands....more

Piramal Still Looking to Sell Stake in Vodafone India
May 11th 2013 - 09:30 GMT
India's Piramal Enterprises has reconfirmed its intention to sell its stake in Vodafone India next year. The drugmaker's chairman, Ajay Piramal confirmed the sale intention to the Reuters news agency....more

Sprint Bid to Buy Clearwire Receives Independent Support
May 11th 2013 - 08:00 GMT
Sprint Nextel's attempt to buy out the minority shareholders in its Clearwire subsidiary received a boost after the independent shareholder advisory group, ISS recommended the offer....more