In today's EMEA roundup: Latin American giant eyes $4.2B Dutch opportunity; Nokia responds to class action; India brings Telenor's Q1 down

Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe

May 8, 2012

2 Min Read
Euronews: Slim Picking at KPN

KPN Telecom NV (NYSE: KPN), Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) and Telenor Group (Nasdaq: TELN) help get the Euronews desk back to work in today's trawl of the EMEA headlines.

  • América Móvil S.A. de C.V. , the Latin American giant controlled by Carlos "The World's Richest Man" Slim, is hoping to increase its current 4.8 percent stake in Dutch incumbent KPN to something approaching 28 percent in a deal valued at US$4.2 billion, reports Reuters. (See KPN Lowers 2012 Profit Outlook and Not So Slim.)

  • Nokia has issued a tight-lipped response to the class action that was launched last week by some of its shareholders in the U.S., who claimed that the potential benefits of introducing Windows-based smartphones had been vastly overstated by the Finnish company. Nokia's statement says: "Nokia is reviewing the allegations contained in the complaint and believes that they are without merit." Game on. (See Lumia Software Bug Dims Nokia's US Hopes and Nokia Kills Symbian in the States.)

  • Nordic operator Telenor recorded a net first-quarter loss of 390 million Norwegian kroner ($67 million) following the write-off of its Indian unit, Uninor , which had its licenses cancelled in the aftermath of India's 2G spectrum auction scandal. (See Telenor Loses NOK 390M in Q1, Telenor Writes Down India Assets, IndiaWatch: Unitech Seeks $150 MN To Sell JV Stake and India's Regulator Wants 2G Licenses Revoked.)

  • Many top executives at BT Group plc (NYSE: BT; London: BTA) are preparing for a juicy payout later this month, as an incentive scheme introduced in 2009 bears fruit, reports the Daily Telegraph. The bonus pot is worth around £90 million ($145 million), according to the newspaper. (See Euronews: Sales Down, Profits Up at BT .)

  • First-quarter net income at Middle East operator Zain Group inched up 2 percent year-on-year to reach KWD 70.9 million ($255.1 million). However, the company warns that the political instability in Sudan and South Sudan will hamper its growth in the region during the rest of the year. (See Zain Posts KWD 71M Profit in Q1.)

    — Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading

About the Author(s)

Paul Rainford

Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading

Paul is based on the Isle of Wight, a rocky outcrop off the English coast that is home only to a colony of technology journalists and several thousand puffins.

He has worked as a writer and copy editor since the age of William Caxton, covering the design industry, D-list celebs, tourism and much, much more.

During the noughties Paul took time out from his page proofs and marker pens to run a small hotel with his other half in the wilds of Exmoor. There he developed a range of skills including carrying cooked breakfasts, lying to unwanted guests and stopping leaks with old towels.

Now back, slightly befuddled, in the world of online journalism, Paul is thoroughly engaged with the modern world, regularly firing up his VHS video recorder and accidentally sending text messages to strangers using a chipped Nokia feature phone.

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