NII Names Dussek CEO; Shindler to Remain Chairman

NII Holdings named long-time telecommunications official Steven Dussek chief executive, replacing Steve Shindler who will stay on as executive chairman.

The news sent shares of NII higher.

"I am extremely excited to join Steve Shindler and the rest of NII's strong management team and to work with a company with such tremendous potential," said Dussek in a prepared statement.

Dussek comes to the Reston, Va., company - a fast-growing wireless operator in Latin America that spun out of Nextel Communications Inc. in 2002 - from Dobson Communications where he saw the company through its $2.8 billion acquisition by AT&T. The deal closed in November.

Dussek has a long history with NII, having served on its board since 1999. He was also CEO and chief operating officer of the company in 1999 and 2000 while it was a unit of Nextel, which itself is now part of Sprint Nextel.

"We are thrilled to have someone of Steve's caliber join the NII team as CEO," said Shindler. "Knowing and working with Steve over the past 20 years, I am confident that he will add energy, depth and strong leadership to our team as we pursue the numerous growth opportunities in our markets."

Schindler had been seen as a possible successor at Sprint Nextel for Gary Foresee, who quit as chairman and CEO in October. Schindler was chief financial officer of Nextel from 1996 to 2000.

Dussek comes aboard as NII's growth is skyrocketing. The company said that in 2007 its net subscribership grew 38%, exceeding its own predictions.

The company also authorized a new $500 million stock buyback plan, following a $500 million plan what was completed in the fourth quarter. NII has a market capitalization of $8.07 billion.

Shares of NII were recently up $2.68, or 5.7%, to $49.30.

-Andrew Edwards, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5973; Andrew.Edwards@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

Posted to the site on 7th January 2008