VSNL to buy broadband business of Dishnet

• 2004-01-23 • In a major development in the Internet segment, Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd (VSNL), India's leading provider of overseas call services, plans to buy the Internet services business of DishnetDSL Ltd. This was discussed by the VSNL board on Thursday.

In a statement given to the National Stock Exchange, VSNL said its board had considered the acquisition that was subject to legal, technical and financial due diligence that was yet to be carried out. VSNL, also listed on the New York Stock Exchange, said the board would take a decision once the due diligence was completed. It gave no time frame.

A leading financial daily has reported that VSNL plans to buy the business for Rs 3.09 billion; but the company denied any such figures in reaction to the report. The paper says the proposed buyout would help VSNL, a former state-run telecom firm now owned by the powerful Tata business group, to enter the growing retail broadband business in the country.

DishnetDSL's web site says its services cover over 200 cities in the country. The paper said the firm has a user base of 36,000 broadband customers and 1.5 lakh dial-up Internet subscribers.

Internet | Mobile Telephony | Satellite Radio

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