The deals were also possible as the major players that could have entered the race on this segment have not. Romtelecom seems to have rather focused on Cosmote integration and “T” rebranding, while UPC’s intentions have not materialized so far.
The largest deal RCS&RDS has clinched so far this year is the one through which the operator took over around 26,000 subscribers from Electrosim company controlled by businessman Hurghis Apavaloaei Ioan Simu, which operated in Alba Iulia, Aiud, Abrud, Campeni, Teius and neighboring villages.
For RCS&RDS, the stake of this deal was not represented only by the almost 30,000 subscribers of Electrosim, but also by the company’s optical fiber line that links Brad locality (Hunedoara county) and Blaj (Alba Iulia county) and that thus added a route the infrastructure of the giant controlled by Zoltan Teszari lacked.
The fiber network is important for RCS&RDS also amid the company’s expansion on the mobile telephony segment.
The deal between RCS&RDS and Electrosim was more complex, though, and marks a first time in terms of the way the cable giant works. Teszari ceded to its small rival the subscribers of Petrosani, Uricani, Lupeni localities, around 13,000 overall, according to ZF information. Moreover, RCS&RDS supposedly paid half a million euros to Simu’s company, according to telecom market information.
In 2014, RCS&RDS also took over the around 7,000 subscribers of Vesatel company, which operated in Reghin, from former senator Petru Basa and his associate Ioan Sita. Another 8,500 subscribers came from Canal 7 company of Baia Mare, whose shareholder was a natural person, Majoros Andrei Csaba.
In another deal, the company took over around 13,000 subscribers of KATV Star, controlled by Serban Augustin and Ioan Sita.
RCS&RDS did not answer ZF’s questions about these deals by edition close.
In June 2013, the company had 2.4 million cable TV subscribers, 0.86 million satellite TV subscribers and 1.6 million fixed internet and data services subscribers.
None of the above mentioned deals seems to have been notified to the Competition Council, which hence did not consider the impact of RCS&RDS’ expansion in the localities where the taken over companies operated.
(English version by Catalina Apostoiu)