Frequencies owned by the company are likely to be shared with the other Italian mobile operators, including Vodafone Group Plc.
Ipse 2000 paid 3.27bn euros ($4bn) for its 3G license in 2001 but the operation was crippled by delays to the technology and Telefonica Moviles was forced to write down 5.05bn euros ($5.40bn) associated with on assets of its operations in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Italy.
The one obstacle in the way of a deal is it needs approval from the Italian telecommunications ministry. It is currently fighting to get an extension to a June 30 deadline when IPSE 2000 had to provide 95% coverage in Italy’s 30 largest cities.
