Stop MTN from acquiring 9mobile, NATCOMS tells NCC
By Ralph Tathagata
Following a recent report that MTN has reached advanced stage in its strategic move to acquire 9mobile, the National Association of Telecoms Subscribers (NATCOMS) has called on the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to intervene and stop MTN from doing so. The move, if allowed, according to NATCOM, will create oligopoly.
Deolu Ogunbanjo, the NATCOMS president, in a chat with Technology Times, said the planned acquisition of 9mobile by the leading Telco, should not be encouraged because MTN is already having close to 50 percent of Nigeria’s telecoms market.
Reports of MTN’s plans to acquire 9mobile’s operating spectrum have been making the rounds. The option to sell its spectrum became compelling after 9mobile fell on hard times upon the exit of its key technical partner and investors, Mubadala of United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2017, according to a Technology Times’ report. However, 9mobile is yet to confirm the authenticity of the report.
Also, as MTN denies its involvement in conversations to acquire 9Mobile’s operating spectrum, it would be recalled that it had attempted to acquire the struggling firm in 2017, after 9mobile was said to have defaulted on a loan repayment scheme of $1.2 billion.
RECOMMENDED ARTICLES
Comment
No comments found.