PARIS--France's telecommunications industry is "in ruins" and
one solution is to reduce the number of mobile operators to three
from the current four, the French Economy Minister Arnaud
Montebourg said Friday.
The minister said in a interview with BFM TV that there were
currently "multiple talks" between the French mobile operators,
following the acquisition of Vivendi's (VIV.FR) SFR by cable group
Numericable SA (NUM.FR) in April, not only between Orange SA
(ORA.FR) and Bouygues Telecom, but also involving others.
Orange, the former state monopoly, and Bouygues SA, the owner of
Bouygues Telecom, Thursday said they were examining possibilities
to tie-up with French rivals
The arrival of Iliad's (ILD.FR) Free mobile service in 2012
sparked a price war and led to layoffs. Now French phone companies
are looking for the way back to growth at home.
Earlier Friday, France's Prime Minister Manuel Valls called for
discretion and moderation in the face of "rumors, which by the way
have been denied by those concerned."
"These are listed companies, hence moderation is needed," Mr.
Valls said, added the French government's concern is to boost
investment and employment and with such touchy and strategic
industries, one must be discreet and not comment on rumors."
In what would be the latest piece of consolidation in the
country's telecom market, Numericable also announced Friday that it
was in exclusive talks to buy Virgin Mobile France in a deal worth
EUR325 million ($445.77 million).
Numericable, which is owned by Altice SA, said it had entered
exclusive negotiations with Omer Telecom Limited, Virgin Mobile
France's parent company, to start consultations with employee
representative bodies. Omer is 46% owned by Carphone Warehouse
Group PLC, the U.K.-based mobile phone retailer.
-Ian Walker in London contributed to this article.
Write to Geraldine Amiel at geraldine.amiel@wsj.com
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