Bell Atlantic Corp. has increased its ownership in Italian carrier Omnitel Pronto Italia, nullifying Mannesmann AG’s agreement with Olivetti SpA to purchase an additional 5.8 percent stake in the operator.
Germany-based Mannesmann, which holds a 5.9 percent interest in Omnitel Pronto Italia, announced in November its intention to acquire the stake from Olivetti but said the purchase was subject to pre-emption rights of Olivetti partners. Bell Atlantic exercised its pre-emption rights and purchased the 5.8 percent, making the company the second largest Omnitel Pronto Italia shareholder at 17.4 percent.
Since October, Olivetti had been seeking to sell part of its ownership in Omnitel Pronto Italia. The Italian computer company planned to sell a small percentage of its 59 percent stake in Omnitel Sistemi Radiocellulari Italiana SpA, the company that owns 70 percent of Omnitel Pronto Italia.
Bell Atlantic said it will pay about $265 million by the end of this year for the share. If certain conditions are met, the company will pay a smaller installment of $9.3 million in July, and another $9.3 million in 2001. Olivetti’s ownership of the carrier decreases from 41.3 percent to 35.5 percent.
Omnitel Pronto Italia launched commercial Global System for Mobile communications service about a year ago, competing with state-owned Telecom Italia Mobile SpA for the first time. Omnitel Pronto Italia expects to capture more than 700,000 customers in its first year of service, said Bell Atlantic.
The Italian government plans to issue a tender for a third mobile phone operator in March. GTE Corp. has joined with Mediaset SpA of Italy, Telenor of Norway, British Telecommunications plc and Banca Nazionale del Lavoro SpA to possibly bid for a license, although the group has not committed to making a bid, said Harvey Gresman, GTE’s vice president of international public affairs.
Enel SpA and AT&T Corp. have expressed an informal interest in bidding for the 1800 MHz license as well, but they have yet to announce their formation of a consortium, said Omnitel Pronto Italia spokesman Patrick Trancu.
