Bulgaria's Watchdog Oks M-Tel Acquisition of 2 Major ISPs

The Bulgarian Competition Protection Commission (CPC) has given the green light to the acquisition of leading Bulgarian internet service providers, Megalan Network and Spectrum Net, by M-Tel, the first and biggest mobile operator in the country.

The price of the deal, which was announced in the middle of September, is about EUR 70 M.

M-Tel, which is part of Telecom Austria Group, will acquire 100% of the two Internet providers. However, both companies will continue to work independently for a period of about 18 months.

With the acquisition of the two cable operators, M-Tel will become one of the biggest suppliers of broadband services, especially in the big Bulgarian cities.

"This is a strategic step which will allow Mobiltel to strengthen its position of an integrated telecom operator and will provide our growth on the already existing market," said Andreas Maierhofer, CEO of M-Tel.

"Our goal is to meet the increasing demand for combined services of fixed and mobile telephony, fixed and mobile Internet, and in addition to these – television," said Maierhofer.

M-Tel is planning to launch new services, bundled with the two cable companies. Some of the products will be released on the Bulgarian market by the end of 2010.

Spectrum Net is present in 13 Bulgarian cities and is focused on broadband Internet and voice services for corporate clients and households.

Megalan is a leading provider of home broadband Internet for Sofia. The portfolio of the company includes IPTV services as well.

In 2010, M-Tel celebrates its 15th year on the Bulgarian market and more than 5 million customers.

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