Unciom Expands Through Acquisition

Communications Today, Nov 25, 2002

China Unicom [CHU] will acquire Unicom New Century, which provides mobile services in the Heilongjiang, Henan, Jiangxi, Jilin, Shaanxi and Sichuan provinces, the Chongqing municipality and the Guangxi Zhuang and Xinjiang Uygur autonomous regions in China.

According to the companies' agreement, China Unicom will use its internal cash to finance the deal at a purchase price of Hong Kong $4.52 billion ($580 million). Unicom New Century, which will become an indirectly wholly owned subsidiary of China Unicom, has increased its subscriber base from 4.23 million at the end of 2000 to 9.56 million at the end of 2001 and 14.46 million through September. For more on this and other hot topics within the wireless sector, be sure to read the latest edition of Wireless Data News. For subscription information, visit the "newsstand" at http://www.TelecomWeb.com.

[Copyright 2002 PBI Media, LLC. All rights reserved.]