[London, ENGLAND] France’s Liberty Surf Group said
Monday that its acquisition of Freesbee, a consumer
and business ISP, would strengthen its position in
the French marketplace as the No.2 Internet provider.
Freesbee brings another 110,000 active subscribers
to Liberty Surf, significantly adding to the larger
ISP’s user base.
A spokesperson for Liberty Surf said that Freesbee’s
subscribers would benefit from the favorable cost
structure which the Liberty Surf Group enjoys because
of its status as a telecoms operator.
For its part, Liberty Surf will benefit from Freesbee’s
strong distribution partnerships, such as the one it
has with Casino. With 2.5 million subscribers in Europe,
Liberty Surf is still keen to strengthen its brand by
making distribution deals.
Strong recent growth has given Liberty Surf a new
impetus, leading to the takeover of Freesbee. The
group reports it has added 0.7 million active subscribers
in the 40 days leading up to September 26, 2000.
During September, Liberty Surf also recorded 200 million
page views, according to audience measurement firm MMXI.
This places it in the top 5 in France, where it is said
that 83 percent of the population recognizes the brand,
according to a recent study by Sofres.
Created as recently as April 1999, Liberty Surf Group
was floated on the Paris Stock Exchange in March this
year, with Europ@web and Kingfisher each holding a 35
percent stake.
To pay for its latest acquisition, Liberty Surf Group
will issue 1,635 million new shares, representing around
1.8 percent of its capital.