French cable TV provider Numericable planned to tap rising investor demand on faster Internet connections before it goes public.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Chief Executive Officer Eric Denoyer said, "Investors are interested in cable operators reinventing themselves through the technology shift to fiber -- markets are fairly open to that right now. The Numericable story is shifting to a growth story, and that's what we want to take to the market."
For the past five years, Numericable had cut costs, restructured debt and integrated its acquisitions, according to a Bloomberg report. Now, the French firm had upgraded its network to fiber technology. Denoyer hopes the improved technology would help the company better sell Internet, TV and fixed phone packages at premium prices. It would also allow Numericable to challenge Orange, one of its rivals in the industry.
Two sources told Bloomberg that Numericable was set to complete its IPO before the end of 2013. One of the people said Numericable would be looking at an enterprise value of EUR 4 billion to EUR 5 billion, including debt.
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