SBC vetoes Vodacom’s Iranian ambitions

South African-based Vodacom has pulled out of the running for Iran’s second cellular licence, reportedly because one of its foreign shareholders vetoed its participation in a proposed consortium with a number of Tehran-based partners. US operator SBC Communications, a stakeholder in Vodacom’s parent telco Telekom South Africa, is said to have been behind the decision. Vodacom’s withdrawal leaves five shortlisted parties battling it out for the concession: Vodacom’s local rival MTN, Austria’s Mobilkom, Orascom Telecom of Egypt, Deutsche Telekom and Turkey’s Turkcell.