Telkom and MTN end talks

ADSL South Africa (Broadband South Africa), 28 November 2007

Talks between MTN and Telkom have ended after dealmakers were unable to strike a deal. This means among other things that MTN will not be taking over any of Telkom’s fixed-line business.

What came as good news to some certainly came as bad news to others…

Telkom announced the news yesterday and said “parties were unable to conclude a transaction in the best interests of their respective shareholders" (Telkom, MTN marriage not to be, Tarrant, Moneyweb).

In other words, no specific reason was given for the sudden ending of talks.

ADSL South Africa (Broadband South Africa) believes Telkom’s greediness stood in the way of a successful deal. We suspected from the beginning, that if talks would end, it would be because of Telkom’s greediness. Rumour has it that Telkom’s asking price was a bit on the steep side. This might be the under statement of the year because we all know that MTN is not easily scared by bigger than normal risks. MTN’s willingness to invest in a country such as Iran, which is on the brink of a full-blown war with the US, is evident of this fact. MTN was willing to invest in Iran but the stakes are too high when dealing with Telkom. One can’t help to grin when this comes to mind. :-)

<< Previous    [1]  2  3  4  5  ...6    Next >>