Virgin Media UK and Everything Everywhere Targeted for Takeover

Cable giant Virgin Media and mobile operator Everything Everywhere (Orange UK and T-Mobile) have allegedly become the targets of a colossal takeover bid by two private equity firms, KKR and Apax Partners, which is being headed up by Tom Alexander (former CEO of Everything Everywhere).

Reports suggest that the EE takeover bid could be worth between £6.4bn-£8bn, while Virgin Media are separately known to be valued at around £4bn. Furthermore it’s claimed that Tom Alexander has already held informal discussions with EE, which are in the very early stages. Virgin Media is said not to have been approached but could become a future target.

Tom Wright, Spokesman for France Telecom (Orange), said (Bloomberg):

“In relation to media speculation, France Telecom clarifies that no offer from a third party to acquire the business has been received nor has been invited.

Everything Everywhere is a strong business with a clear leadership position in the U.K. market and its shareholders are 100 percent supportive of the group, its management and its strategy.”

Suffice to say that the official line from all involved is that nothing has happened, yet, and the prospect of a takeover remains very much uncertain. Never the less, discussions seem to have taken place and Tom Alexander appears to be taking the idea seriously.

However it’s widely speculated that any takeover would result in the merged T-Mobile and Orange UK (Everything Everywhere) businesses returning to a single brand and possibly retaining the ‘Orange’ name. Throw in Virgin Media for good measure and the competition authorities might suddenly have a few concerns.