Telecom Italia Board Approves National Landline Network Spinoff
- Carrier to create a separate unit, keep full control of grid
- Italy sought to limit Vivendi’s influence over phone company
A logo sits on a fixed-line public telephone booth, operated by Telecom Italia SpA, in Rome, Italy.
Photographer: Alessia Pierdomenico/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Telecom Italia SpA’s board authorized Chief Executive Officer Amos Genish to spin off its fixed-line network to improve rivals’ access to an asset that is the focal point of Italian concern about Vivendi SA’s influence over the former phone monopoly.
The national network has a book value of about 15 billion euros ($18.6 billion), slightly less than the carrier’s current market value. With a stake of almost 24 percent, Vivendi is Telecom Italia’s biggest investor. The company will create a separate unit for the network, but continue to fully own the grid, it said in a statement Tuesday.