Vodafone, Kabel Deutschland integration begins

Following the completion of its acquisition of Kabel Deutschland, Vodafone Germany has announced that integration with the German cable operator began on 1 April 2014, enabling it to offer customers mobile, landline, broadband internet and TV services ‘under one roof’. The combined entity has a customer base of 40 million and a broadband network (DSL, cable or LTE) passing a total of 39.2 million households in Germany, of which 16.1 million are able to access connections speeds of at least 25Mbps. A commercial launch of the combined product offers will take place shortly, according to a press release from Vodafone. As reported by TeleGeography’s CommsUpdate, in June 2013 Vodafone officially announced its intention to acquire Kabel Deutschland for EUR7.7 billion (USD10.6 billion) and EUR3 billion of net debt. After launching a voluntary public takeover offer, on 13 September 2013 Vodafone said that the 75% minimum acceptance condition had been met, and following European Commission approval, the transaction completed on 14 October 2013 with Vodafone holding 76.57% of the share capital of Kabel Deutschland. March 2014 saw Vodafone Group announce that its indirect German subsidiary, Vodafone Vierte Verwaltungs, had registered a domination and profit and loss transfer agreement, which formally entered into force on 1 April.