Swedish telecoms operator Tele2 and broadband provider Com Hem have upgraded their SKr27bn (US$3.3bn) merger plan, after posting anticipated or better than expected first quarter earnings. The cash­ and stock-based deal, announced in January and tied to regulatory approval, would see Tele2 buy Com Hem to combine mobile and fixed-line services to create a connectivity giant in...

Satellite operator Globalstar will combine with a fibre company under a new name with plans that include a rights offering in a complex merger valued at US$1.65bn. Key elements of a long-rumoured deal involve long-sought stability for Globalstar, as represented by 2019 adjusted EBITDA of the combined entity exceeding…

The new mobile operating partnership formed by cablecos Comcast and Charter Communications is set to disrupt the US wireless market, ratcheting up competition and revising M&A expectations. The 50/50 joint venture formalised the cooperation pact reached by Comcast and Charter last year, when they unveiled a plan to challenge the national telco operators. The cable companies’ venture into mobile has highlighted convergence in the telecoms sector, leaving incumbents...

Speedcast International is seeking greater flexibility through refinancing as the satcoms provider expects revenue and EBITDA growth in 2018 after solid performance last year. Following the refinancing, Speedcast would have a net leverage ratio of…

Swiss newspace startup Astrocast aims to launch its first test nanosat on a shared Falcon 9 rocket this summer, after raising more than US$4m in a seed round for the US$50m 64-strong constellation with 16 in-orbit spares. SatelliteFinance talks to CFO Kjell Karlsen, the former president of launch provider Sea Launch, as it looks to raise a series A this year for the M2M and IoT connectivity...

Israeli businessman Raz Steinmetz is reportedly behind a bid to buy satellite operator Spacecom that came after its debt-laden owner Eurocom was ordered into liquidation. Steinmetz, the nephew of billionaire Beny Steinmetz, is the...

AT&T surprisingly opted to withdraw the planned IPO of its DirecTV Latin America business, which was expected to help deleverage the telco giant ahead of its US$84.5bn acquisition of Time Warner. The telco cited “current market conditions” for the cancellation, declining to comment on a report that the offering had been postponed. Meanwhile, the trial challenging AT&T’s proposed acquisition of Time Warner is moving into...

US-based Zayo Group has expanded its European platform with its first data centre in the London metro area as the infrastructure specialist appears poised to benefit from industry consolidation. Zayo’s new zColo facility in the UK, as well as its recent acquisition of a data centre in McLean, Virginia, demonstrate its steady use of M&A to scale its global footprint. In fact, the company’s “unique and highly strategic asset mix”, which includes the largest independent portfolio of high-quality dark fibre in the US, has established Zayo as a “top beneficiary of key themes like...