Telecoms mergers and acquisitions up as big players prepare to meet

Just read an interesting article that says that there has been a surge in merger and acquisition activity amongst telecoms operators in recent weeks, and that they has been a number of "cross border deals across international markets". It says that major deals have been reported in the last week, most notably that Vodafone and Tata Communications are bidding over $1bn for UK based Cable & Wireless Worldwide. This would be a major business transaction in anyone eyes, and we will be watching developments with a keen interest.

Other telecoms mergers and acquisitions mentioned include Turkcell considering a $1.4bn bid for Vivacom in Belgium and France, Telecom Orange spending US$2bn on a takeover of Mobinil in Egypt, Telenor of Norway increasing its stake in Vimplecom, and UAE-based Etisalat looking at making further acquisitions.

The report also mentions that many of the global telecoms operators, leading executives and key players in the telecoms world are to meet with investment bankers in London on March 14th at the TMT (Telecoms, Media & Technology) M&A (Mergers & Acquisitions) forum on 14th March in London, to discuss future deals and transactions. Shockingly, we haven't been invited, but Goldman Sachs, UBS, Citi, Clifford Chance, Silicon Valley Bank and Tata Communications will be among the major companies speaking at the event. We'll keep you posted.

Popular Local Phone Numbers: Liverpool

This week the local phone number blog is continuing its profile of areas with popular virtual local phone numbers by looking at a city with a proud and great history and heritage. Liverpool is a major port and city on Merseyside in the north west of England in the UK.

Liverpool was founded in 1207, and celebrated its 800th anniversary in 2007. However, it took many centuries to grow into the major city that it is today, as 300 years later the population of Liverpool was only around 500 people. Liverpool grew dramatically as the result of it being a major port, so that by the 19th century, an incredible 40% of the world's trade passed through Liverpool's port.

In 1830 the first inter-city railway link was built connecting Liverpool and Manchester, and the population grew dramatically in the 1840s as many Irish migrants fled the potato famine and headed to the west coast of England. By 1851, 25% of the population of Liverpool was Irish born.

Liverpool finally became a city in 1880. Liverpool's strategic importance meant its bombing was only second to London's during World War II. Tourism is vital to Liverpool, with the city being the 6th most visited in the UK. The Albert Docks, the Liver birds, the cathedral and the tudor houses are among many notable landmarks. It is of course also famous for being the home of The Beatles as well as many other music legends, and for a host of reasons was the European Capital of Culture in 2008.

It has a strong and growing knowledge economy, and is home to three universities. It is of course also home to two Premier League football clubs, Liverpool at Anfield and Everton at Goodison Park.

The local phone number for Liverpool is the 0151 phone number.

Local phone number providers go international

We've noticed that leading providers of virtual local phone numbers are now starting to go international more frequently. Virtual local phone numbers allow companies to have a telephone presence in towns and cities that they don't have a physical presence in, but now businesses are going one step further by getting a telephone presence in countries that they don't have a physical presence in! International toll free numbers seem to be a hugely popular option at the moment for companies wanting to do businesses overseas but not wanting to make that huge leap at the moment of getting staff and properties overseas. For people with an interest in telecoms, it is an interesting development.

Popular Local Phone Numbers: Cardiff

This week we continue our look at some of the most popular virtual local phone numbers in the UK by looking at the capital city of Wales: Cardiff. As well as being the capital city of Wales, Cardiff is also the largest city in Wales and the most populous city in Wales. Cardiff is the 10th largest city in the UK and has a population of around 350,000 people. It is the location of the Welsh Assembly, the government body that was created through devolution when the Blair government was elected in the late 1990s. Cardiff attracts a significant number of tourists each year, with around 18 million visitors in 2010. It was ranked 6th in the world for National Geographic's alternative tourist destinations in 2011.

Cardiff is actually the anglicised name for the city, which in Welsh is Caerdydd. This means "the fort on the Taff". Cardiff is the county town of Glamorgan, and was given this status in 1536.
Surprisingly, despite being the capital city of Wales, Cardiff was a small town until the 19th century, and did not gain city status until 1905. In fact, in 1801 it was only the 25th largest town in Wales, but grew so much that by 1881 it was the largest town in Wales. Its dramatic growth came about from its role as a major port for shipping coal during the industrial revolution.

Cardiff is home to many major sporting venues, including the Millennium Stadium. One of the most famous attractions in Cardiff is Cardiff Castle, at the heart of the city centre. The local phone number for Cardiff is 029.

The most local phone numbers?

A provider of virtual local phone numbers contacted us earlier in the week to say that they had just sold 400 different virtual local phone numbers to a company, giving them a telephone presence in most areas of the UK. We felt that that had to be a record, and wondered is there anyone out there who can claim to beat that?

Marketing article on local phone numbers

There was an interesting article about the importance of phone numbers and in particular local phone numbers in marketing published a couple of weeks ago in Dealer Marketing Magazine by Laura Noonan. Click here to read the article.

Popular Local Phone Numbers: Edinburgh

This week we're heading north to Scotland to continue our profile of some of the more popular locations for virtual local phone numbers. Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and has a population of around 486,000 people. Despite this, it is only the second largest city in Scotland by population, having been overtaken by Glasgow during the Industrial Revolution.

Whilst humans have inhabited the area since the Bronze Age and there was a hill fort on the site of modern day Edinburgh from around the 6th century, the town itself probably came into existence some time in the 11th century, and a 12th century Royal Charter from King David I of Scotland granted land to Church of the Holy Rood in Edinburgh in 1124. Edinburgh developed as two separate areas, one around the volcanic rock that is today the landmark that Edinburgh castle sits on top of, and the other around the Abbey of Holyrood. Edinburgh was a major centre of the Enlightenment period, earning it the nickname the "Athens of the North".

One of the most well known events in Edinburgh is the annual Edinburgh Festival, which includes the Edinburgh Fringe, the largest performing arts festival in the world. It also includes the Edinburgh International Festival, the Edinburgh Military Tattoo and the Edinburgh International Book Festival. This event attracts around half a million visitors to Edinburgh during the month of August. Edinburgh is also well known for Hogmanay on New Year's Eve and Burns Night in January, as well as various other events, all of which help to bring over 1 million visitors per year into Scotland's capital.