July 12 (SeeNews) - Telekom Austria's CEO said the company is interested in Croatia's H1 Telekom and Serbian cable operator SBB as part of an acquisitional drive in Southeastern Europe (SEE) that could help turn it into the biggest player in the region, Austrian media reported on Friday.
The company can fund small acquisitions by tapping its cash reserves but larger ones would require a capital increase, Hannes Ametsreiter told Wirtschaftswoche, adding that a share issue was not planned at the moment but could not be ruled out.
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Telekom Austria will stick to its convergence strategy in the region because the interlinking of products allows it to keep its customers for a longer period, Ametsreiter said.
In SEE, Telekom Austria Group has operations in Croatia, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Serbia and Macedonia. As part of its converegence drive, it has in the last couple of years acquired several cable operators in Bulgaria and Croatia.