Vodafone are urging Kabel Deutschland shareholders to accept its 7.7 billion euro offer, warning the bid would lapse if less than three quarters of them agree to sell Germany’s largest cable operator by Wednesday.
Earlier on Monday the Financial Times said the British mobile network operator may fail to reach the 75 percent acceptance threshold, citing anonymous shareholders.
Vodafone, which last week agreed the sale of its share in U.S. operator Verizon Wireless for $130 billion, wants to buy Kabel Deutschland to offer more television and fixed-line services in Germany, its largest European mobile market.
If the deal collapses, Vodafone would be left relying on an agreement to rent fixed lines from Deutsche Telekom, rather than owning its network. It also faces the risk of Kabel Deutschland becoming an aggressive competitor in mobile phones, analysts said.
“There will not be any additional acceptance period should the 75 percent acceptance condition not be met by Wednesday, 11 September,” Vodafone said on Monday.
Vodafone said that by Friday evening it had secured the support of holders of 11.86 percent of Kabel Deutschland, which operates Germany’s biggest cable network. That includes 4.27 percent of Kabel Deutschland shares Vodafone and a person that acts jointly with the group already owned.
In acquisitions, however, shareholders generally wait until the deadline to tender their shares in case a last-minute rival bid emerges.
One of Kabel Deutschland’s 30 largest shareholders said on Monday he expected the deal to go through.
“Shareholders are unlikely to get a better deal for their shares in the next three to four years. Vodafone and Kabel D. can unlock high synergies from the joint utilization of networks and a counter-bid is unlikely.”
He said Kabel’s biggest rival in Germany, Liberty Global, was unlikely to make a counter offer after antitrust-clearance for its 2012 acquisition of Kabel Baden-Wuerttemberg was overturned by a regional court last month.
Original article: Vodafone urges Kabel shareholders to accept $10 billion bid.
