Second Time Around for Deutsche Telekom's Cable Businesses

Germany’s state telephone company Deutsche Telekom has sold off the final six of its regional cable television companies. They were bought by a consortium of Goldman Sachs Capital, Apax Partners and Providence equity for 1.725 billion euros ($1.867 billion). This is somewhat under their estimated true value of 2 to 2.5 billion, but the sales agreement also specifies that the final price could rise by as much as 375 million euros, depending on the way the companies’ value develops in future. Telekom will use the proceeds of the sale to pay off part of its 64-billion-euro debt. It sold the six companies once before – to the US group Liberty Media. That sale was blocked by the EU’s monopolies commission, which will also have to give the go-ahead for this one.