vodafone group plc (VODE) Snapshot

Vodafone Group Public Limited Company (LSE:VOD) is about to make a concrete takeover offer for Kabel Deutschland Holding AG (DB:KD8), in the next few days, Wirtschaftswoche reported today citing investment bankers. Vodafone thus aims to first have a look at Kabel Deutschland's books and will then decide if an improved offer would be launched, the paper reported. According to investment bankers involved in the deal , the amount of Vodafone's offer depends on the potential synergies that could be generated, Wirtschaftswoche reported. Taking into account that Kabel market value has risen to above €7 billion, Vodafone would have to make an offer worth more than €10 billion, including €2.7 billion of debts.

Vodafone Group Public Limited Company (LSE:VOD) is considering an eventual acquisition of FASTWEB S.p.A. to expand its fixed-line and Internet assets, people familiar with the matter said. Vodafone added Fastweb, a unit of Swisscom AG (SWX:SCMN), to a list of potential takeover targets, said the people, declining to be identified as the deliberations are private. Vodafone made two informal approaches for Fastweb in 2011 and in 2013 that were rejected by Swisscom, two of the people said. Vodafone spokesman Simon Gordon declined to comment on the Vodafone’s interest in Fastweb. Swisscom spokesman Carsten Roetz declined to comment on any possible transaction.

Vodafone announced the addition of two new high performance smart phones designed to accelerate the adoption of mobile internet usage within the mass market. The Smart III is a smartphone with a high-resolution 4-inch screen that offers an exceptional level of processing power, memory and functionality at a price below €100 for a prepaid customer. Vodafone is also offering a version of the Smart III with Near Field Communications technology (NFC), enabling customers to benefit from the speed, simplicity and convenience of managing their everyday transactions with a single wave of their smartphone. Vodafone also announced the launch of the Smart mini, a powerful new smartphone that delivers an unprecedented combination of high-performance, an extensive feature set with no compromise on quality and a breakthrough starting price of less than €60. The Smart mini has been specifically designed to deliver the complete mobile internet experience to the majority of global mobile phone users yet to benefit from smartphone ownership. It will introduce a new wave of consumers to everything the mobile internet has to offer, from simple messaging through to multimedia apps and sophisticated location-based services. These devices include the latest Android™ applications, such as Google Now™ and Google Voice Search™, as well as a range of simple but powerful Vodafone apps to help customers manage their digital lives and keep their personal information safe and secure with simple one-click backups. The Smart mini and Smart III are available on prepaid and postpaid price plans, including Vodafone's Red proposition. Smart III device offers a large 4,0" WVGA TFT capacitive touchscreen; 1Ghz processor, supported by 512 Mb of RAM; 4 GB of internal storage that can be expanded by 32GB via a microSD card; high-speed 3G HSUPA, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity; Jelly Bean 4.1 Android operating system with Google Voice Search, Google Now, Google 3D Maps, Navigation and Streetview; 5 megapixel camera with white LED flash; the latest Assisted GPS technology for accurate mapping and navigation. Smart mini is the most affordable smartphone in the Vodafone range. It delivers a highly responsive 3.5" HVGA TFT capacitive touchscreen; 1Ghz processor, supported by 512Mb of RAM; Jelly Bean 4.1 Android operating system with Google Voice Search, Google Now, Google 3D Maps, Navigation and Streetview; high-speed 3G UMTS HSPA, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity; 2 megapixel camera; the latest Assisted GPS technology for accurate mapping and navigation; and set-up wizard that makes it easy for first-time smartphone users to set up their device. The Smart mini will be available across Vodafone markets from June.