Lo siento, pero esta noticia está en inglés.
quote:
Fuente: The Sydney Morning Herald
Jobs to go as Vodafone and 3 merge
February 9, 2009 – 4:56 PM
Jobs will be lost from Vodafone Australia and Hutchison Telecommunications (Australia) Ltd (HTA) as the pair join forces to compete against the might of Telstra and Optus.
The merger of the third and fourth largest telcos in Australia will be known as VHA Pty Ltd, with each company to own a 50% stake.
The unlisted Vodafone will be the lead brand in the partnership, with the future of the 3 brand, owned by list telco HTA, uncertain.
The merger requires the approval of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) and HTAL shareholders, but VHA is expected to be established by mid-2009.
The HTA board has unanimously supported the merger.
Nigel Dews, HTA chief executive and the future VHA head, confirmed the merger would result in job cuts and store closures, but refused to disclose how many.
“There will be redundancies, and we’ll be dealing with those as we get our plans more fully into place,” Mr Dews said. “It’s a very sensitive issue.
“It’s very important that we look after the interests of our staff, and we’ll be making sure that we have a very fair, open and transparent process as we go through that, but at the same time getting the benefits of scale that we can for our shareholders.”
The majority of job cuts would come from “overhead areas as distinct from the front line”, he said.
Approximately 3700 people are employed by Vodafone and HTA, while the two companies have over 400 stores between them.
Customers of both companies will not be adversely affected by the merger, Mr Dews said.
“In the short term nothing changes … customers should not be worried at all,” he said.
HTA and Vodafone have been close competitors in Australia’s mobile market, and the possibility of a merge has seemingly been a talking point between the pair for some time.
Vodafone’s Asia-Pacific & Middle East chief executive Nick Read said negotiations “got serious over the last couple of months”.
He denied the merger was forced by the economic downturn, insisting it is primarily a move to take on Telstra and Optus.
“I really don’t think the economic climate is relevant to this proposal,” Mr Read said. “It’s all about scale. We needed to have the appropriate scale to compete against both of those players.
“It was more about the opportunity of really making a difference to the Australian market and the consumers.”
Earnings per share for both Vodafone and Hutchison Australia are expected to be enhanced by the merger deal, with savings of about $2 billion expected through synergies.
VHA will have an estimated revenue of approximately $4 billion from its 6 million customers.
Vodafone will receive a deferred payment of $500 million from VHA, by way of a shareholder loan from Vodafone to VHA, to equalise the value differences between the companies.
The loan is expected to be repaid or refinanced with 18 months from the completion of the merger.
Ovum analyst Nathan Burley said the new telco group will add welcome competition to the mobile market, provided it is run well.
“The combined scale of this new entity, with the global strengths of Vodafone and Hutchison, will provide the necessary elements for a third strong competitor able to compete and invest long-term in the Australian market place,” Mr Burley said.
HTA shares ended up one cent at 12.5 cents on Monday, valuing the group at $94.25 million.
AAP
Por poner un resumen: Vodafone Australia y Hutchinson Australia fusionan sus negocios allá bajo una única compañía que se va a llamar VHA, participada al 50% por ambas, y que seguramente funcionará bajo la marca Vodafone. El futuro de la marca 3 (Three) en Australia queda en duda. El consejo de Hutchinson Australia ha apoyado la medida por unanimidad, aunque falta el respaldo de sus accionistas y del regulador australiano ACCC.
Según el CEO de Vodafone Australia, la fusión no tiene relación con la crisis económica, sino que se trata de un movimiento estratégico para ganar volumen y sinergias y poder competir en mejores condiciones contra Telstra (el incumbente) y Optus.
¿Pasará algo parecido con otras compañías de Hutchinson? No hace mucho vendieron Hutch Essar de la India a Vodafone…
