Turkish GSM Merger Completed

TIM (Telecom Italia Group) has said that the merger of IsTIM - the mobile operator owned by TIM (49%) and Isbank Group (51%) - with Aycell, the GSM operator entirely held by the state owned fixed-line operator Turk Telekom, was been completed on February 19th, 2004.

The integration process, started last May with the signature of an agreement defining the guidelines for the merger of IsTIM (Aria) and Aycell, has been completed after all the approvals of the relevant Authorities have been obtained.

TIM and Turk Telekom own 40% stake in the new company (TT&TIM) each and IsBank Group holds 20%.

The merger is aimed at creating important operational and financial synergies, deriving from the integration of the two entities; in particular it will make the most of the innovation capacity, commercial and brand achievements by Aria, as well as the speed of infrastructure development and customer acquisition implemented by Aycell. TT&TIM will place side-by-side Turk Telekom's solidity and deep knowledge of the Turkish market, TIM's international know-how in the mobile business along with the financial expertise of Isbank, the most rooted establishment in Turkey.

Currently, the two companies have a joint customer base of about 4.5 million customers representing 15% of the total market."

Posted to the site on 23rd February 2004