Deutsche Telekom CEO Tim Höttges once again expressed interest in using the group's tower assets to do something (rather than sitting on it as it is currently).

According to Reuters, he said at the Morgan Stanley European Technology, Media and Telecommunications (TMT) conference: "I really want to have an industrial partner, and I am willing to split."

Höttges reiterated his point that he does not care about IPOs and minority stake sales (the route taken by Vodafone and Vantage Towers), and that he wants to retain some control over decision-making after any transaction.

Cell phone tower on the roof in Germany. Workers stand on the lifting platform and work on the antenna mast. (Source: Pa Picture Alliance/Alamy Stock Photo)

"To me, the split makes perfect sense," Höttges asserted at Morgan Stanley's TMT event. "By the way, I always say that. I always say that the IPO path of a few people makes no sense."

The CEO of Deutsche Telekom continued to defend industrial solutions, "but I always need two to tango." He added that he was "open" to partners. "Let's find a good logic for this," Höttges said.

Vodafone has similar ideas

Höttges chose the same language as Vodafone CEO Nick Read.

At the company's first-half earnings meeting this week, Read did not rule out the possibility of the spin-off of Vantage Towers, which was listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in March (but still holds a majority stake).

Reid said the spin-off can "optimize" the capital structure. Like Höttges, he talked enthusiastically about "joint control with like-minded industrial players."

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The CEO of Vodafone stated that Deutsche Telekom and Orange are two “very reliable and very high-quality operators with which we have established a very strong relationship”, and for the cooperation with a European tower company, both companies are It is a potentially attractive "industry partner".

When Höttges delivered a speech on the company's third quarter earnings conference call this week, he also took the time to introduce the operators' strategic thinking on the tower in detail.

After excluding the option of'take the money and run' (Telefónica sold its tower to ATC), he added: "We really like the option of having a strong partner to move forward with us. I even prefer The separation of this asset makes this company entrepreneurial and independent of, for example, participating in 5G construction and the growth of the edge cloud environment."

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— Ken Wieland, Contributing Editor, Light Reading Contributing Editor

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