Cellular service provider GloCell said on Monday that it has acquired Altech Autopage’s Cell C subscriber base for an undisclosed sum. It said the Competition Commission had approved the transaction.
The deal comes as MTN and Vodacom acquire their respective bases from Autopage, whose parent, Altron, decided last year to exit the under-pressure mobile service provider market, in which it was the last remaining large player.
“We are naturally pleased that the Competition Commission has ruled in favour of the transaction and we look forward to delivering new ground-breaking personalised service to our subscribers and their families, [and] also better value,” said Alessandro Mariola, founder and MD of GloCell, in a statement.
GloCell was established in 2001 and is now a R5bn/year telecommunications group which counts Investec as a major shareholder.
The company specialises in providing Cell C contracts. It also distributes prepaid and virtual products from all the operators to banks, petroleum companies, major retailers, wholesalers and emerging markets.
“GloCell is in the process of taking over and rebranding many of Autopage’s outlets nationally, upgrading these to become ‘experience’ stores and rebranding them GloCell,” said Mariola.
Update: Cell C has contradicted GloCell’s statement that it has acquired the company’s subscribers from Altech Autopage. Rather, it said, GloCell has been appointed as a new service agent that will service the customers being transferred from Autopage to Cell C. — (c) 2016 NewsCentral Media