MONTREAL – According to a published report out of Europe, Canadian MSO Cogeco Cable has pulled out of bidding for a group of cable companies in Belgium.
According to Telecom Paper (subscription required), Cogeco "is no longer interested in acquiring the group of eight cable operators in Wallonia (the southern, French-speaking half, of Belgium).
"(E)ight Belgian operators, owned by local municipalities and Electrabel, are looking for a partner to help develop new services, such as Internet, digital TV and telephony," says the brief story.
There are three remaining European bidders, according to the story.
This could be the investment Cogeco CEO Louis Audet was referring to during the company’s last quarterly conference call with financial analysts when he said the company walked away from a potential European deal and that $20.3 million in escrow was being returned to Cogeco.
When contacted by www.cartt.ca today, however, Cogeco CEO Louis Audet declined any and all comment on the report.
Throughout 2005 and into this year, Cogeco has been looking at expanding into Europe. In 2005, reports out of Portugal said the Canadian company was close to buying Cabovisao, a Portuguese cable operation founded and built by former Videotron executives.
Cogeco has not commented directly on any of the published reports.
Financial analysts have criticized Cogeco’s European exploration but the company has been unapologetic, saying it is exploring good growth opportunities that it will not overpay for.
