Alternative operator Hungarian Telephone and Cable Corp (HTCC) has announced it is adopting the Invitel brand across its entire domestic operations, following its acquisition of rival telco Invitel earlier this year. HTCC completed the acquisition of Invitel Tavkozlesi Szolgaltato (Invitel), the second largest fixed line telecoms service provider in Hungary on 30 April. It bought 100% of the shares in Matel Holdings – and thereby indirectly 99.98% of Invitel shares – for a total of EUR470 million (USD639 million), plus the assumption of net debt of EUR387 million. The remainder of the consideration comprised a cash payment by HTCC to the owners of Invitel and the issuance of approximately 962,000 shares of HTCC’s common stock to members of Invitel’s management team in return for some of their Invitel shares.
Telecommunications services formerly provided by HTCC companies Hungarotel, Pantel, Pantel Technocom and Invitel, will all adopt the familiar brand name, Invitel, and its new image. The move comes following a market research study which found that most people recognised and welcomed the Invitel brand name most from among the alternatives offered.