File this under “we’ll see what this means.” The Globe And Mail is reporting that two people “familiar with the situation” say that Verizon is putting off purchasing Wind and Mobilicity:
The New York-based communications giant had been looking at buying one or both of Wind Mobile and Mobilicity, two struggling carriers that are for sale. After tabling a $700-million preliminary offer for Wind and signing a non-disclosure agreement with Mobilicity in recent months, Verizon has now decided to delay pursuing those deals until after a government auction of wireless licences in January, said two people familiar with the situation.
So, does that mean that they are not entering Canada? No:
Instead, Verizon will focus on deciding whether to participate in the upcoming auction of the 700 megahertz frequency, considered the most valuable airwaves that have ever come up for bidding in Canada. If Verizon enters the auction and wins the spectrum it wants, it could then look at potentially bidding for Wind and Mobilicity at some point next year, sources say.
Such a change in strategy would give Verizon more time to decide on whether to enter Canada at all – the spectrum auction is not set to begin until Jan. 14. Carriers face a Sept. 17 deadline to apply and to put down a refundable deposit. Once that paperwork is filed, however, prospective bidders are barred from negotiating any deals with other bidders until next year.
So is this a win for the big three? Not exactly. Verizon hasn’t gone away. They’re still there lurking in the background. Is this a loss for the Federal Government. Not yet. While I’m sure they were hoping that Verizon would rush in and advance their agenda, the fact that they haven’t gone away is still good for them. Take it from me, this is not over. There’s more to come from this drama and you can expect a few plot twists along the way.
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This entry was posted on August 14, 2013 at 11:16 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags Canada, verizon. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Verizon Said To Be Delaying Wind, Mobilicity Purchase
File this under “we’ll see what this means.” The Globe And Mail is reporting that two people “familiar with the situation” say that Verizon is putting off purchasing Wind and Mobilicity:
The New York-based communications giant had been looking at buying one or both of Wind Mobile and Mobilicity, two struggling carriers that are for sale. After tabling a $700-million preliminary offer for Wind and signing a non-disclosure agreement with Mobilicity in recent months, Verizon has now decided to delay pursuing those deals until after a government auction of wireless licences in January, said two people familiar with the situation.
So, does that mean that they are not entering Canada? No:
Instead, Verizon will focus on deciding whether to participate in the upcoming auction of the 700 megahertz frequency, considered the most valuable airwaves that have ever come up for bidding in Canada. If Verizon enters the auction and wins the spectrum it wants, it could then look at potentially bidding for Wind and Mobilicity at some point next year, sources say.
Such a change in strategy would give Verizon more time to decide on whether to enter Canada at all – the spectrum auction is not set to begin until Jan. 14. Carriers face a Sept. 17 deadline to apply and to put down a refundable deposit. Once that paperwork is filed, however, prospective bidders are barred from negotiating any deals with other bidders until next year.
So is this a win for the big three? Not exactly. Verizon hasn’t gone away. They’re still there lurking in the background. Is this a loss for the Federal Government. Not yet. While I’m sure they were hoping that Verizon would rush in and advance their agenda, the fact that they haven’t gone away is still good for them. Take it from me, this is not over. There’s more to come from this drama and you can expect a few plot twists along the way.
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This entry was posted on August 14, 2013 at 11:16 pm and is filed under Commentary with tags Canada, verizon. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.