All change again – O2 buy The Link

Just as we’re getting used to the broadband markets on again, off again capers – it’s all change in the mobile phone space as well. DSG International, owner of Dixons (rip), Curry’s and PC World has announced that it has sold –The Link – it’s ailing high street mobile phone stores to O2 – aka CellNet ex BT, now owned by Spain’s Telefonica – following?

DSG owned 60% of the Link and will get £30m in cash, O2 already own the other 40%. The Link, which has about 300 stores across the UK was becoming a thorn in the side for DSG, reportedly being a major factor in DSG’s 9% fall in profit .

So, it looks like yet another convergence play as O2 have also just bought the small (10k customers) broadband provider – Be – for £50m. O2 UK chief executive Matthew Key said: This acquisition [Be] will enable us to take advantage of technology innovations to offer a wider range of joined up mobile, internet and content services for our consumer and business customers in the future.

Having the positions on the high street will provide the means to sell a competitive product set to Carphone warehouses ‘Talk Talk’ all-in option – we’ll have to see how quickly O2 can switch The Link from multi-brand to O2 brand, and even more importantly if it can put all the parts together to really challenge Carphone warehouse in the near term.

Once again BT is pretty much left waiting around for its release next April by the regulatory bodies.

We suspect that Orange and T-mobile will enter into the bloodbath pretty soon – Sir Richard are you and your pals at NTL ready as well?

Sources

DSG to offload The Link to O2 for £30m Times online
O2 says Be mine for £50m The Reg
O2 buys The Link for £30m Telegraph