Virgin Media, O2 merger talks confirmed
May 4, 2020
By Chris Forrester
A filing made by Telefónica to the Spanish media regulator May 4th confirms that its O2 cellular operator in the UK is in formal talks with Liberty Global-backed Virgin Media.
As is usual in these cases, the filing stresses there is no certainty of the talks leading to a successful outcome: “The process started between both parties is in the negotiation phase, with no guarantee, at this point, of its precise terms or its probability of success.”
Virgin Media is the UK’s leading cable operator and competes directly with Comcast-owned Sky – although it carries most Sky channels – for subscribers. Other competitors include BT, TalkTalk and others with broadband services.
Telefónica added to its statement that it would inform the market of progress if a satisfactory agreement were reached.
Virgin has some 6 million cable subscribers and 3.3 million mobile users.