14 April 1999
Autorité de régulation des télécommunications (ART) has been informed of the proposed buyout of Omnicom by Global TeleSystems Group.
At this time, ART reminds operators holding a telecommunications licence that they are required to inform it immediately of any modification to their capital. The purpose of this measure is to allow ART to check that this modification is compatible with the conditions under which the authorisation was granted.
This procedure will be performed for Omnicom, which holds an authorisation dated 18 December 1997. The same procedure is currently in progress for Esprit Télécom France which holds an authorisation dated 12 March 1998, modified 7 July 1998, and which was taken over by Global TeleSystems Group in March 1999.
ART also reminds operators that, with its decision dated 14 January 1998, it granted the transporter selection digit 5 to Omnicom and that, in its decision dated 17 July 1998, it granted the digit 6 to Esprit Télécom France. At that time, the two companies made commitments to deploy a network over the entire French metropolitan territory according to a specific timetable.
Today, ART received the directors of Global TeleSystems Group, Omnicom and Esprit Telecom France. In view of the information provided it during this meeting and additional information it requested, ART will examine legal aspects, an investment programme and the business plan as well as commitments made in the authorisations which will be transferred to the new shareholder. Therefore, it will have to appreciate the possible consequences of these two operations involving Esprit Télécom France and Omnicom:
- the authorisations granted
- the transporter selection digits which were assigned them, and in particular, the removal of one of them