Comments
In an attempt to strengthen its presence in the home broadband segment, Vodafone India has acquired Mumbai-based internet service provider You Broadband for ₹350-400 crore. The companies are expected to announce the deal in the next few weeks.
Vodafone India and You Broadband did not respond to queries sent via email. Rothschild India and ICICI Securities, the advisors for the deal, also did not respond.
The deal has been in the making for the past six months and has now been concluded with Vodafone expected to make an announcement soon, according to sources who are aware of the development but declined to be identified.
The deal assumes significance in the light of the launch of broadband services by Reliance Jio later this year.
Gearing upIncumbent operators are buying assets in a bid to cover their flanks from all sides before the Reliance juggernaut rolls.
Bharti Airtel, for instance, has been on a buying spree the past few months. It has signed two separate deals to acquire spectrum from Aircel and Videocon. Vodafone’s acquisition, on the other hand, will help it strengthen its fixed line broadband network in the consumer space.
Until now Vodafone’s fixed line unit was focused primarily on the enterprise segment. You Broadband has more than 3,000 km of optic fibre cable and 6,000 km of last mile co-axial cable network and employs about 1,400 people.
According to data available with TRAI, You Broadband had 5 lakh subscribers as on January 2016. It is one of the few companies capable of offering triple play services.
This means, through one connection customers can access broadband, make voice calls through internet (VoIP), and watch videos. ‘
The company, set up in 2001 by British Gas as Iqara Broadband, is closely-held with financial backing from funds advised by TRG Management.
The company is a category A ISP and offers high-speed internet and voice services to home users, small businesses and corporate customers across 12 cities, including Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Pune and Surat.
Comments
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.