A Spanish government decision left Orange and Masmovil on track to complete a merger of their operations in the country by the end of the current quarter. The companies have now secured all necessary clearances to form a 50:50 joint venture.
Minister of Digital Transformation Jose Luis Escriva told at a press conference that Orange and Masmovil’s commitments around network investment convinced the government the combination was a good thing. Spanish government approval for a transfer of frequencies was the final clearance required for Orange and Masmovil’s plan after the European Commission ratified the merger last month.
Escriva credited Orange and Masmovil’s plans to invest in their fixed and mobile networks as being ambitious, noting the government was confident the merger would reinforce a strategic market in terms of security and economic benefit. The operators already agreed to divest some Masmovil spectrum to MVNO Digi Communications, which was enough to alleviate EC concerns over the competitive impact of the tie-up. Orange previously stated the merged business would have more than 30 million mobile and 7.3 million fixed-line customers.
Krešimir Madunović, Member of the Management Board and Chief Operating Officer Residential at Hrvatski Telekom, makes it clear that an operator’s value is increasingly measured by its ability to deliver a complete user experience – from a high-performance network to seamless access to the content people actually want to watch.
Danijela Bistrički Morović, Member of the Management Board and Chief Technology Officer of Telemach Hrvatska, describes the network as a system that must adapt almost in real time, with growing reliance on artificial intelligence and a highly pragmatic approach to new generations of mobile technologies.
Crnogorski Telekom is entering a new phase of mobile infrastructure development with a clear message: network quality alone is no longer enough.
