The 012 Smile businesses that Joseph Maiman acquired through Ampal-American Israel Corporation (Nasdaq: AMPL; TASE:AMPL) may not apply for an mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) license so long as IDB Holding Corp. Ltd. (TASE:IDBH) subsidiary Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd. (TASE: CLIS) continues to hold a stake in Ampal.
Ministry of Communications regulations stipulate that MVNOs may not have any ties to telecommunications groups or mobile operators. IDB unit Discount Investment Corporation (TASE: DISI) controls mobile operator Cellcom Israel Ltd. (NYSE:CEL; TASE:CEL) and Internet service provider (ISP) and international calls carrier NetVision Ltd. (TASE: NTSN).
Ampal acquired the ISP and international calls carrier businesses of 012 Smile.Communications Ltd. (Nasdaq:SMLC; TASE: SMLC) from Shaul Elovitch for NIS 1.2 billion. Clal Insurance own 5.06% of Ampal and its provident funds owns a further 0.96%, and it cannot be ruled out that Maiman will have to ask IDB controlling shareholder Nochi Dankner to reduce Clal Insurance's stake in Smile.
012 Smile is considered a leading candidate to obtain an MVNO license, and it is examining the Ministry of Communications' license conditions. While the conditions are ostensibly attractive for an MVNO operator, which Smile wants to be, the company has not completed its review and questions remain open.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 27, 2010
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