OXFORD, England-Both Cable & Wireless plc and Telecom Italia have been searching long and hard for an international partner. Now the search may be over. The two operators intend to join forces in a global alliance to strengthen their international operations.
Cable & Wireless claims to be the third-largest international carrier in the world. It has built up an eclectic collection of holdings in operators around the globe but remains strongest in territories which were part of the former British Empire, such as the Caribbean where it has a significant presence. The Telecom Italia alliance provides access to Latin America. Recently Cable & Wireless has been disposing many of its holdings, retaining only those businesses where it has control or significant management influence.
Telecom Italia has fought tenaciously to preserve its position as Italy’s dominant operator. It owns Europe’s largest mobile network operator, with more than 9 million subscribers. Telecom Italia is the second-largest force in Latin America after Spain’s Telefonica Internacional.
Telecom Italia and Telefonica are seasoned adversaries. Telecom Italia controls Retevision, Spain’s second fixed operator, and has just tabled a surprise last-minute bid to compete against France Telecom Group for Spain’s third cellular license.
When European Union competition commissioner Karel van Miert met recently with Telecom Italia officials to discuss complaints about Telefonica and access to the Spanish market, he told them: “As far as I can tell, Telefonica is behaving no worse than you are behaving in Italy.”
