@alasta Sorry post was made in March not today :)

Would have liked the opportunity to invest in one or both of these at IPO... merged entity even better if this ends up IPOing.

I think a merged Vocus + 2degrees would easily be approved by CommComm. The two together present no concerns around substantial lessening of competition (as there's relatively limited overlap, just primarily in the UFB residential area) and indeed the merged entity would be in a much stronger position to bring more competition to Spark and Vodafone.

Spark alone are miles ahead in market share in both mobile and broadband and it's obviously quite hard to shake this despite 2degrees' (and others in broadband) being on the scene for a while now. But look at what 2degrees have already achieved in the mobile space!

Linux:

 

@alasta Sorry post was made in March not today :)

 

All that dangerous 5G radiation must be affecting your concentration! 😛

If this merger goes ahead, that would be a helluva lot of systems to merge/migrate.

The Telco space must be one of the most common for mergers/acquisitions. Rememebr all our beloved ISPs that once were there - Ihug and Snap come to mind....

It's becoming tough to ensure diversity of ISPs. We have what were Orcon and Snap as seperate providers. That became Vocus and 2degrees and will now become a single merged entity!

MikeB4: Vocus NZ renaming/branding to Orcon from my ear to the ground.

It's been referred to as "Orcon Group" during their pre-IPO roadshows apparently. Everything old is new again I guess.

alasta:

 

Linux:

 

@alasta Sorry post was made in March not today :)

 

 

All that dangerous 5G radiation must be affecting your concentration! 😛

 

I'm sure there's a Covid anti-vaxxer joke in there somewhere...

Yeah, the press release was sent around 4pm yesterday and obviously doesn't clarify anything:

 

Trilogy International Partners Inc. ("TIP Inc.") (TSX:TRL), an international wireless and fixed broadband telecommunications operator, is issuing this press release in response to a request from the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada ("IIROC") to comment on the recent trading activity of its stock.
TIP Inc. has announced today that it has paused activity on an initial public offering of the shares of Two Degrees Group Limited ("TDGL"), its New Zealand subsidiary offering mobile and broadband communications services, in order to consider a possible alternative transaction with another party. TIP Inc. expects to provide additional details in the next several days regarding such a transaction or to resume activities with respect to the initial public offering of TDGL shares.

 

Official now:

 

Trilogy International Partners Inc. (“TIP Inc.”) (TSX: TRL), an international wireless and fixed broadband telecommunications operator announced today that it has entered into exclusive discussions with Macquarie Asset Management and Aware Super to assess whether a merger of Two Degrees Group Limited (“2degrees”) and Orcon Group Limited (“Orcon Group”), can be agreed on satisfactory terms. Trilogy is the majority owner of 2degrees.  Orcon Group is owned by Vocus Group Limited (“Vocus Group”), which was previously listed on the ASX and acquired by Macquarie Asset Management and Aware Super in July 2021. 

 

The potential merger would bring together 2degrees’ and Orcon Group’s complementary assets across mobile, broadband and fixed line services. With a shared challenger mindset, 2degrees and Orcon Group would create an integrated fixed-mobile business of scale, providing better service to customers in New Zealand’s mobile and fixed telecommunication markets.  

 

Any combination of 2degrees and Orcon Group would be subject to required regulatory approvals, the satisfactory completion of due diligence, and the negotiation of final terms and definitive documentation. There can be no assurance that any transaction will be completed as described above or at all.

 

TIP Inc., Macquarie Asset Management and Aware Super have agreed to pause the public listing preparations of their respective subsidiaries while they discuss the potential merger. 

 

Trilogy and 2degrees are being advised by Montarne, and Macquarie Asset Management, Aware Super and Vocus Group are being advised by UBS.  

 

Zeon:

 

The Telco space must be one of the most common for mergers/acquisitions. Rememebr all our beloved ISPs that once were there - Ihug and Snap come to mind....

 

It's becoming tough to ensure diversity of ISPs. We have what were Orcon and Snap as seperate providers. That became Vocus and 2degrees and will now become a single merged entity!

 

Hardly. Isn’t there over 50 ISPs in NZ?

Nearer 80, I think.

MaxineN:

Thing is Orcon and Slingshot offer mobile services with Spark as their network. I imagine that there would be a bit of a shuffle to have 2 mobile networks.

I am unsure if I support the merge or am against it.