09/15, 11:55pm
Shareholders said to be ready to force changes
Amid rumors that Deutsche Telekom, T-Mobile's parent company, is considering a takeover bid for the US rival Sprint, sources claim the German company's biggest shareholders are preparing to force changes, according to the Financial Times. Although both companies have remained mum on any private negotiations, the report corroborates earlier suggestions that D Telekom has become frustrated with the performance of its US subsidiary.
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09/13, 10:15pm
Deutsche Telekom mulling Sprint takeover
T-Mobile's root company Deutsche Telekom is more seriously considering buying Sprint in what could be a major shakeup of the US cellphone industry, according to sources. The two have been rumored in talks for such a deal for over a year, but tips to the Telegraph now have the German firm bringing in financial advisers from Deutsche Bank to evaluate the possibility of making a bid for the ailing but still larger American provider. An offer could be made as soon as within a few weeks, the insiders said, though the likely terms of the deal haven't been mentioned.
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04/02, 12:25pm
Germany halts iPhone Skype
German iPhone owners have been banned from fully exploiting the recently-released Skype app, writes the Associated Press. In spite of the title being legally available to download from the country's App Store, T-Mobile warns that it considers use of the app on its network a violation of contract. All VoIP services on the iPhone have been blocked since 2007, notes a representative for T-Mobile's parent company, Deutsche Telekom.
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11/06, 12:55pm
T-Mobile Ger., US fortunes
The German division of T-Mobile, owned by Deutsche Telekom, received a substantial boost from the iPhone in its third financial quarter, according to a results report. T-Mobile Deutschland is said to have gained 271,000 net subscribers in Q3, a full 82 percent better than in the same period of 2007. The company describes the iPhone 3G as a "significant driver" of new subscriptions, and notes that it was "in extremely high demand" during the July launch phase. 401,000 German subscribers were recorded in all, and Deutsche Telekom's total net income for the quarter was $1.52 billion versus last year's $1.37 billion.
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10/31, 4:35pm
FCC warns T-Mobile of deal
The FCC investigation into the Verizon Wireless and Alltel Corp. tie-up and therefore foreign-controlled assets in other telecommunications companies, which could spell trouble for T-Mobile for something it has done back in 2001, according to a WSJ report. On October 17, the FCC sent a warning letter to T-Mobile, advising it that the acquisition by Germany's Deutsche Telekom was not performed under the mandated 20 percent voting stock threshold. The FCC found Deutsche Telekom has a 30 percent, non-controlling stake in T-Mobile, and the letter is asking T-Mobile to come up with a solution that would comply with the 20 percent limit within 30 days.
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08/25, 9:35am
T-Mobile: 120,000+ iPhones
Deutsche Telekom's wireless division, T-Mobile, has sold over 120,000 iPhone 3Gs since the device's launch on July 11th, according to the division's CEO. Hamid Akhavan claims that "expectations were surpassed," and that at least 75,000 of the phones were sold in Germany. Many people wanting one have not yet been able to obtain it though, as Akhavan notes that a backlog exists due to delivery problems.
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08/04, 3:25pm
DT News4Me Reader Rumor
German communications giant Deutsche Telekom is producing an e-book reader that would give customers a digital way to read the company's content, according to a report in the country's Der Spiegel newspaper. The device is seen as a bridge between too-small cellphone screens and large notebooks and would primarily serve as a conduit for print media. Unlike Amazon's Kindle, there would be no Internet-only content like websites or RSS feeds, and articles would more closely reflect the print versions. In exchange, the unnamed device would be simpler to use than its American rival.
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05/20, 9:25am
T-Mobile & iPhone control
The iPhone will likely remain a T-Mobile exclusive in Germany, says the company's CEO. "We have a very good relationship with Apple...at least in Germany it is exclusive, and we expect it to remain as such," Hamid Akhavan is quoted as saying by Reuters. The comment comes in response to a string of non-exclusive deals in countries such as Italy and Austria, reversing a trend in which Apple insisted that any country with the iPhone have only one official carrier. Other regions currently operating on exclusive contracts include the US, the UK, Ireland and France.
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05/15, 12:00pm
100K + iPhones in Germany
T-Mobile has sold over 100,000 iPhones in Germany, according to the head of the carrier's parent company, Deutsche Telekom. CEO Rene Obermann made the statement Thursday as a follow-up to statistics from January, which indicated that it had sold 70,000 iPhones since the device's local debut in early November of 2007. While the figure points to a relative slowdown in sales, T-Mobile board member Hamid Akhavan says that this is "about in line" with corporate targets.
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05/03, 5:05pm
T-Mo May Buy Sprint
T-Mobile's parent company Deutsche Telekom is seriously considering merging with or taking over Sprint, claims the German national magazine Der Spiegel. A continued weakening of US currency values, combined with worsening results at Sprint, is reportedly leading the European company to investigate transactions that would help T-Mobile USA gain ground in the US market and better compete against AT&T. The opportunity is rare and would cost Deutsche Telekom less than it did to buy VoiceStream in 2001 and assume its role as one of the largest American carriers, according to the report.
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02/12, 11:40am
iPhone coming to Austria
The next country to receive the iPhone will be Austria, says the chief executive of T-Mobile. Hamid Akhavan announced the news on Tuesday, according to Reuters, explaining that iPhones would go on sale sometime within the first half of 2008. The release will be notable for two reasons: first by making Austria only the fourth country in Europe to officially adopt the Apple device, but secondly for giving the same carrier control in two separate regions. T-Mobile was the original non-American vendor of the iPhone, launching in Germany on November 9th. Over 70,000 units have been sold there to date. T-Mobile is owned by Deutsche Telekom.
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01/28, 9:10am
70,000 iPhones in Germany
Deutsche Telekom, the owner of T-Mobile, says that some 70,000 German iPhone subscribers have been added in the 11 weeks since the product's debut in the country on November 9th of last year. "The iPhone is by far the most sold multimedia device in T-Mobile's portfolio," according to Philipp Humm, the head of T-Mobile Germany. Reuters notes however that this figure is roughly equivalent to the number of iPhones sold by Orange in France, which only began its sales on November 28th.
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