Sonera, the Finnish unit of Nordic operator TeliaSonera, has agreed to buy the consumer operations and fixed networks of AinaCom for €47 million ($65 million) in a move that strengthens Sonera's position on the Finnish market.
AinaCom's consumer operations include around 15,900 fixed broadband and 9,000 fixed voice subscriptions, 29,000 cable TV subscriptions and 10,000 mobile subscriptions.
"With the agreement, Sonera strengthens its position in the Hämeenlinna region while also deepening its cooperation with AinaCom's remaining B2B business," said Valdur Laid, who has been appointed the new head of TeliaSonera Finland with effect from April 1, 2014.
The acquired operations generated sales of around €16 million in 2013, and EBITDA of about €6 million. The agreement includes the transfer of 43 people to Sonera.
In a separate announcement, TeliaSonera also reported that its Kcell unit in Kazakhstan has lost a court case after the court of the first instance ruled in favour of the Agency for Competition Protection (ACP). ACP claimed that the company abused its dominant position in the Kazakhstan market, leading to the violation of customers' rights.
TeliaSonera holds 61.9 per cent of Kcell, which is listed on the stock exchanges in London and Almaty. The unit forms part of the group's Eurasian operations, which have been under review following concerns that some transactions carried out in recent years did not comply with sound business practices.
In November last year, TeliaSonera terminated the employment contracts of four senior employees, including its chief financial officer, following a wider review conducted by law firm Norton Rose Fulbright into business practices at its Eurasian operations
For more:
- see this TeliaSonera release on AinaCom
- see this TeliaSonera release on Kcell
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