A strategic alliance

Published: 18 May 1999 y., Tuesday
Microsoft Corp. and media company Bertelsmann AG are considering whether to jointly acquire the cable network of Deutsche Telekom AG along with Deutsche Bank AG and other firms, the weekly news magazine Der Spiegel said. The magazine, in the summary of an article to appear in its next edition, said Bertelsmann was mulling a price of $4.5 billion to $5 billion, compared to more than $16 billion as envisioned by Deutsche Telekom. A member of Telekom_s management board told Spiegel that Telekom Chief Executive R. Sommer planned a strategic alliance with an unnamed U.S. telecoms firm in which the cable television unit would be bundled. Neither Telekom nor Bertelsmann spokesmen would comment on the report. Earlier this year Deutsche Bank said it would only buy Deutsche Telekom_s cable television unit as a temporary investor and did not want to become the full-time operator of the nationwide network, the world_s largest with around 17 million subscribers. On Wednesday Telekom declined to comment on a report in weekly Die Zeit that Microsoft had set aside $1 billion to invest in the German phone company, which plans to merge with Telecome Italia SpA. Die Zeit said that if Microsoft did not invest the money in Deutsche Telekom directly, it might invest in the cable television network.
Šaltinis: Der Spiegel
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.

Facebook Comments

New comment


Captcha

Associated articles

The most popular articles

Bankers have lost their friends in Davos - EP vice-president

Reform of the banking system was one of the key themes at this year's World Economic Forum in Davos, with bankers coming in for a lot of criticism. more »

Support small firms while tackling the crisis, say MEPs and experts

Small firms have been hard hit by the economic crisis, and so must be given incentives and support, including easier access to credit, help with innovation, tax breaks and less red tape, MEPs on Parliament's Special Committee on the Financial, Economic and Social Crisis (CRIS), and experts agreed at a workshop on Monday. more »

Reopening of trade negotiations between the EU and Central America within sight

The elections and investiture of Porfirio Lobo as President of Honduras have cleared the way for the EU to restore normal relations with the Central American country and negotiations for signing a bi-regional Association Agreement may soon resume. more »

European Globalisation Fund set to help workers in the furniture manufacturing and clothing industries in Lithuania

The European Commission has approved applications from Lithuania for assistance under the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF). more »

State aid: Commission takes Italy to Court for failure to recover illegal aid from hotels in Sardinia

The European Commission has decided to refer Italy to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) on the basis of Article 108(2) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) for failing to comply with a Commission decision of July 2008. more »

EBRD’s first investment in deposit insurance entity

The EBRD is helping to strengthen the financial sector in Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) with a €50 million credit line to the Deposit Insurance Agency of Bosnia and Herzegovina (DIA), the Bank’s first investment in a deposit insurance entity. more »

EBRD’s first investment in gas sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina

In its first investment in the natural resources sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the EBRD is providing a €17 million sovereign loan to finance the gasification of the Central Bosnia Canton. more »

EBRD supports private businesses in Armenia

The EBRD is increasing the availability of financing to private businesses in Armenia with a $5 million credit line and a $3 million trade finance facility to ArmSwissBank for small and medium companies (SMEs). more »

European Commission: Lithuania Has Taken Effective Action

On January 27 the European Commission assessed the action taken by Lithuania, Malta, Latvia and Hungary in response to recommendations proposed by the Commission and endorsed by the Council in July 2009 in respect to the correction of their respective budget deficits. more »

Lithuania’s GDP Growth Largest in EU in Q3

EUROSTAT announced that Lithuania’s GDP rose by 6.1 % in the 3rd quarter of 2009 versus the previous quarter. more »