Jul
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7/3/2009 8:02 AM
The crowded UK mobile market could be about to get a bit smaller, according to several reports that say a handful of networks are interested in buying Deutsche Telekom’s T-Mobile UK network, the country’s troubled, fourth largest network. Guardian.co.uk, , Times Online and others all put various names in from—from Orange to Vodafone to O2. DT itself has previously denied rumors that it’s seeking a buyer for T-Mobile, while a spokesman for Telefonica-owned O2, thought to be a favorite in what some newspapers are calling a “bidding war”, told us that the reports were based on speculation but added that the company continues to “monitor the situation with interest.”New T-Mobile CEO Richard Moat only started his new job last week and officially DT has yet to put anything on the table. But consolidation of the UK mobile is a long-running problem and fewer competitors would be an obvious route to higher profitability for the remaining players. Or, as Ovum senior analyst Emeka Obiodu puts it : “Everyone agrees consolidation is needed and seemingly T-Mobile will fall first.”
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