Merging with another European player is not out of the question for KPN chief executive Eelco Blok, but he admits that while a tie-up with Belgacom is now more feasible than it was some years ago, the two telcos are unlikely to forge an alliance in the near future.
"You have to be realistic," Blok said in an interview published by Dutch newspaper Het Financieele Dagblad on Saturday. The CEO said he would have no problem with KPN joining up with one of Europe’s big players at some point, provided such a move made sense for customers and staff, as well as to himself.
However, the main f ocus of the financial paper’s piece was the likelihood – or otherwise – of a merger between KPN and fellow incumbent Belgacom.
Speculation over a KPN/Belgacom tie-up has waxed and waned over the past 15 years, Blok said. The fact that the Netherlands and Belgium are neighbours makes a deal seem logical.
However, there are a number of challenges, including Belgacom’s status as a state-owned player; the Belgian government still holds a 53.51% stake in the telco. There is also some reticence due to recent unsuccessful Dutch-Belgian combinations, Blok said.
One major hurdle has just been removed though, which is probably why the subject is being discussed by the local media once again.
KPN last month agreed to sell its Belgian mobile operator Base to cable operator Telenet for €1.325 billion. Once completed, the deal will mark KPN’s exit from the Belgian mobile market, where Base competes with Belgacom’s Proximus.
Blok does not see KPN closing a deal with Belgacom any time soon, but nonetheless he talked up the potential synergies the pair could exploit as telcos increasingly offer platform-based services, he said.
