Euronews: Telefónica May List LatAm Units

Telefónica SA (NYSE: TEF), Bouygues Telecom , SFR and Nokia Corp. (NYSE: NOK) lead the way in today's trawl of the EMEA headlines.

Hard on the heels of Telefónica's listing of part of its German unit comes news that the Spanish giant is now considering the same trick with its Latin American arm, reports the Financial Times (subscription required). CEO Cesar Alierta told the FT that the carrier is planning to list up to 15 percent of its Latin American operations as part of its debt-reduction strategy. (See Euronews: Telefónica Firms Up German IPO, Euronews: Telefónica to Seek UK IPO? and Telefónica Plans Regional IPOs.)

Cut-price upstart Iliad (Euronext: ILD) is still causing ructions in the French mobile market, and the latest evidence of this is the series of talks being held between rivals Bouygues and SFR about sharing their networks outside the main cities, reports Reuters, citing France's Journal du Dimanche. (See Iliad Disrupts the French Mobile Scene .)

Nokia has confirmed that it is to sell (and then lease back) its Espoo headquarters to Exilion, a Finnish real estate company, for €170 million (US$222 million). A brutalist symphony in concrete and glass, Nokia House was designed by Pekka Helin. (See Nokia to Sell Head Office and Euronews: Nokia Considers Espoo HQ Sale.)

Anite plc , the U.K.-based handset and network testing firm, saw half-year profits hit £8.2 million ($13.2 million), up from £5.9 million ($9.5 million) in the same period a year ago. Its handset testing division was particularly perky, with the drive to LTE pushing revenues up by 17 percent year-on-year to £40.5 million ($65.2 million). (See Anite Makes £8.2M in H1 and Anite Adds to Its LTE Arsenal.)

Geo Networks Ltd. has completed its fiber ring between the U.K. and Ireland. Cogent Communications Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: CCOI) and euNetworks Group Ltd. are just two of the companies already signed up to use the 100G-capable route, says Geo. (See Geo Completes Fiber Ring Between UK & Ireland.)

— Paul Rainford, Assistant Editor, Europe, Light Reading