2degrees backer extends ownership; offers Haitian update

Shareholding in 2degrees has changed once again with majority owner Trilogy International increasing its stake in the fledgling mobile operator.

Trilogy now has 57% ownership – up from its 52% stake. In addition, minority shareholder Communication Venture Partners (CVP) has increased its ownership from 25.7% to 28.5%

This has come at the expense of Hautaki Trust, whose shareholding decreased from 20% to 13% after it failed to raise an additional $20 million to retain its stake. The remaining shares in 2degrees are owned by KLR Hong Kong.

The change in ownership structure has coincided with the appointment of a new chairman for 2degrees – Stewart Sheriff, the CTO of Trilogy. He replaces Bill Osborne who represents Hautaki’s interests.

Sheriff has been working to restore Voila, the mobile network in Haiti owned by Trilogy, following the massive earthquake on 12 January.

A statement released by Trilogy this week says that nearly 90% of cell sites owned by Voila are back in operation. Its restoration effort has been helped by equipment donations from T-Mobile, AT&T, Sprint, Sony Ericsson, Motorola, Samsung, LG, CT Miami, RIM and Brightstar.

Trilogy chairman John Stanton praised the generosity of the carriers and equipment suppliers: “They know that to recover from a catastrophe you need a reliable communication system – and they have been generous in offering the equipment that’s essential for Voila to continue serving the Haitian people and the thousands of volunteers who have arrived to provide assistance.”

Voila is now working with the Irish Red Cross as part of a vaccination campaign run by UNICEF and the World Health Organisation to inoculate millions of Haitians against measles, diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, and rubella.

Voila is sending a series of text messages translated into Creole to its one million subscribers informing them about the campaign. The Irish Red Cross estimates that word-of-mouth will allow each daily message to spread to at least a further three to four family members and friends.

Stanton was in Auckland last month where he told the audience that new mobile operators can expect to make a profit after five to six years in operation. 2degrees launched in August last year.

Photo: Voila employees distributing food to a neighbourhood a week ago Sunday.