TalkTalk buys Tiscali UK for £236m
New deal creates UK's biggest broadband provider
TalkTalk, the fixed line arm of The Carphone Warehouse, has announced it has acquired the UK assets of ailing broadband provider for £236 million.
The deal makes the merged group the largest broadband provider in the UK, covering over a quarter of all broadband subscriptions in the UK.
The news will be welcome to Tiscali's current subscribers as it ends the continued uncertainty of whether the Italian broadband provider, which has over £500m worth of debt, will be forced to pull out of the UK.
Uninterrupted
The deal means that coverage will continue uninterrupted for current subscribers, as well as email addresses being saved, which would have led to a great inconvenience for those that have had the same address for years.
BSkyB was previously in talks to acquire Tiscali, but pulled out of the deal earlier in 2009 after the economic downturn.
Charles Dunstone, founder of The Carphone Warehouse, said: "Six years ago, no one could have imagined that we would build the largest residential broadband provider in the UK, but our determination to offer incredible value with the latest technology has propelled us to being the most popular provider in the country.
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"Combining Tiscali with TalkTalk creates a unique platform that will allow us to innovate faster and provide an even better service for our enlarged customer base. The most important message for Tiscali customers is that their service will continue and improve."
Gareth has been part of the consumer technology world in a career spanning three decades. He started life as a staff writer on the fledgling TechRadar, and has grew with the site (primarily as phones, tablets and wearables editor) until becoming Global Editor in Chief in 2018. Gareth has written over 4,000 articles for TechRadar, has contributed expert insight to a number of other publications, chaired panels on zeitgeist technologies, presented at the Gadget Show Live as well as representing the brand on TV and radio for multiple channels including Sky, BBC, ITV and Al-Jazeera. Passionate about fitness, he can bore anyone rigid about stress management, sleep tracking, heart rate variance as well as bemoaning something about the latest iPhone, Galaxy or OLED TV.