Telekom Austria Group has announced an agreement to acquire Amisco, a holding company which owns Amis, a broadband internet provider with operations in Slovenia and Croatia. The purchase price was not disclosed, though local press reports suggest that existing owners Iris Capital, Kebek Private Equity and Amis’ management will receive around EUR30 million (USD33.5 million) for their shares.
Amis offers internet, IPTV and telephony services, with approximately 63,000 and 23,000 broadband customers in Slovenia and Croatia respectively at year-end 2014. It operates as a fixed line reseller in Slovenia and also owns a fibre network in Croatia. Telekom Austria Group is already well-established in Slovenia and Croatia through cellular operators Si.Mobil (Slovenia) and VIPnet (Croatia), both of which hold second place in their respective mobile markets (while Amis already offers MVNO services over the Si.Mobil network). VIPnet also offers a comprehensive fixed line, broadband and pay-TV service range in Croatia, partly built on its 2011 acquisition of the country’s dominant cableco B.net, which will be enhanced by the addition of Amis’ fibre network, while the Amis takeover will help the Austrian group provide a fully converged suite of solutions in Slovenia. Telekom Austria Group will finance the transaction via existing cashflow. The deal is expected to close in Q3 2015, subject to merger control clearance.