Cinven Limited, a leader in European private equity, and Altice, the cable operator with operations in Alsace, Belgium and Luxembourg, today announce that following discussions with the workers’ councils of France Télécom Cable, TDF Câble, and NC Numéricâble, an agreement has been reached to acquire France Télécom Câble, which includes TDF cable networks, and NC Numéricâble, a subsidiary of Group Canal+.
The transaction has been concluded for a consideration of €528 million. This transaction is subject to regulatory and contractual approvals.
Cinven will hold a majority stake of 50.01% in the Group, with Altice holding 10.01% and France Télécom and Canal+ each holding 19.99%.
The Group will combine all of the network, television and Internet subscribers of the cable operators who between them have 1.8 million subscribers.
Debt facilities were arranged and underwritten by BNP Paribas and Calyon.
Nicolas Paulmier, a Cinven Partner, said:
“The group will have significant growth potential. Today, cable offers the highest bandwidth in the market. We have a huge opportunity here to address the future developments of the cable market and meet the needs of customers. We will be investing in its networks, sales force and product offerings with a view to providing the very best services to customers.”
Patrick Drahi, founder of Altice added:
“Our experience in the sector will provide the new group with the strategic support and knowledge-base through which to drive the future development of its existing and future products, with a view to maintaining its position as the leader in cable services in France.”