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T-Mobile UK and Orange to merge | T-Mobile UK and Orange to merge |
(10 minutes later) | |
T-Mobile UK and Orange are to merge - becoming the UK's biggest mobile phone firm with 28.4 million customers. | |
The deal between Orange owner France Telecom and Deutsch Telekom's T-Mobile UK will create a business with sales of 9.4bn euros (£8.2bn; $13.5bn). | |
The merged firm will have about 37% of the UK mobile market - overtaking the current market leader, Telefonica's O2. | |
It is the second large corporate deal in two days, after Kraft Food's £10.2bn takeover proposal for Cadbury. | |
'Champion' | 'Champion' |
T-Mobile is currently the fourth-largest mobile operator in the UK, with a 15% share of the market. | T-Mobile is currently the fourth-largest mobile operator in the UK, with a 15% share of the market. |
O2 has a 27% share, followed by Vodafone (25%) and Orange (22%). | |
The firms said in a joint statement that they hoped to create "a new mobile champion", adding that it was hoped the 50:50 joint venture could be signed by November. | |
Integrating the business will cost between £600m and £800m, the firms said. This bill would include decommissioning mobile phone masts, cutting back the network of stores and streamlining other operations. | |
Savings should reach about £445m a year by 2014, they added. | Savings should reach about £445m a year by 2014, they added. |