The Iliad boss and co-owner of Le Monde, Xavier Niel, now has a “potential interest” from 15.143% stake in Telecom Italia, said Friday the Italian stock exchange authority (Consob).
On entering the Italian capital Telecom Italia, the boss of the Iliad-Free operator and owner of the Le Monde , Xavier Niel, came frontally shoving another French telecom tycoon Vincent Bollore, which has recently become Vivendi the largest shareholder of the Italian operator.
No comments of both parties
Xavier Niel declined to comment, while a spokesman of Iliad, parent company of the operator Free, said the company had no part in the operation which could rise, according the price of Telecom Italia at the close Wednesday at € 1.7 billion. Unexpected, this movement can be interpreted as a challenge to the Vivendi group, led by another French cador telecom, Vincent Bolloré.
The Boss Telecom Italia, Marco Patuano, said he “do not think” that the two groups were acting in concert. “As far as I know, there is no connection” them, said Mr. Patuano. Vivendi, owner including Canal + and Universal Music, became the main shareholder of the Italian operator in June with the acquisition of 14.9% of the shares, before increasing its share gradually to 20.03% last Friday. Vivendi declined to respond to that information.
While the French media giant, eager to expand in southern Europe, had expressed his desire for closer ties with telecom operators, Telecom Italia in mind, in order to access a particular preferred distribution and a solid customer base, the irruption of Xavier Niel – even privately – Vivendi could complicate plans. Especially as some investors, encouraged by his gradual rise in the capital of the transalpine operator, lent him the will to eventually taking control.
On the side of Mr. Niel, observers have pointed to recent press reports suggesting the creation by the boss of Free, its ally the banker Matthieu Pigasse and TV producer Pierre-Antoine Capton a fund that can meet 500 million to buy the media. This new stunt, Xavier Niel, 10 th makeshift France confirms its image of atypical and unpredictable entrepreneur, telecom industry troublemaker. Reflecting the creation in January 2012 of Free Mobile, which had cut prices and hackneyed cards of the sector in France, long monopolized by Orange, SFR and Bouygues Telecom.
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