PLDT takes over Sky Cable’s internet business

MANILA, Philippines — PLDT Inc. has acquired the broadband business of Lopez-owned Sky Cable Corp. for almost P7 billion in a deal that cements the market dominance of the telco giant.

PLDT yesterday announced that it signed a sale and purchase agreement with Sky Vision Corp., ABS-CBN Corp. and Lopez Inc. for the acquisition of Sky Cable’s assets for internet service.

Under the transaction, PLDT will obtain 100 percent of Sky Cable’s total issued and outstanding capital stock, consisting of 1.38 billion common shares, for a purchase price of P6.75 billion.

PLDT said that it would settle 94 percent or P6.35 billion of the transaction cost upon the closing of the deal. The firm will issue the remaining P405 million once the Bureau of Internal Revenue releases the tax clearance for the sale and purchase agreement.

Prior to closing, PLDT and Sky Cable vowed to secure all applicable government approvals and clearances. Sky Cable also has to terminate the operations of its pay TV and cable businesses to make way for PLDT’s takeover of its broadband assets.

PLDT, for its part, informed its shareholders that its financial condition, including leverage, will remain the same in spite of the cost of the transaction.

The Pangilinan-led telco said that it acquired Sky Cable’s broadband business as part of efforts to narrow the digital divide in the Philippines.

Through the deal, PLDT said that it could broaden and strengthen the coverage of its products and services, especially in remote areas, to the benefit of subscribers of both parties.

PLDT also said that the transaction would improve customer experience now that its expertise and resources are combined with those of Sky Cable. All in all, the telco giant hopes to contribute to the government’s push to expand digital infrastructure across the archipelago.

Sky Cable lost its right to provide direct to home services after its parent ABS-CBN failed to get its legislative franchise renewed in 2020. Afterward, Sky Cable focused on expanding its internet business through its residential service Sky Fiber and enterprise broadband Sky Biz.

Pending full year data, Sky Cable raised P6.1 billion in revenue from January to September 2022 in a proof that its broadband shift is paying off.

Last year Cignal Cable Corp., a subsidiary of PLDT’s MediaQuest Holdings Inc., was supposed to purchase 38.88 percent of Sky Cable for P7.5 billion, but had to call off the deal on mounting political and regulatory pressure against ABS-CBN.