Fastweb-Vodafone merger, what changes for customers (of both companies)

Control of Vodafone Italia had been in the sights of the telecommunications giants for some time.
The French of Iliad had tried before by proposing a 50-50 alliance in Italy in exchange for 6.6 billion immediately and a shareholder loan of 2 billion.
But Vodafone CEO Margherita Della Valle rejected the offer.
Now, however, he seems to be accepting the proposal of the Swiss from Swisscom who are offering 8 billion to take control of Vodafone Italia and then merge it with the subsidiary Fastweb.
This would create a giant with 7 billion in revenues and eight thousand employees.
The negotiations are at an advanced stage although there is no certainty regarding the timing of the deal's conclusion, what is known is that they will certainly take time.
If the outcome were positive, Swisscom would merge Vodafone Italia into Fastweb, saying goodbye to the experience of the English group in our country after 30 years.
But what will this merger between Fastweb and Vodafone mean for customers? On the private consumer side there would not be many shocks, on the business services side however Tim's dominance could be called into question.
Fastweb-Vodafone merger: what changes for private customers For private customers, the merger between the two telecommunications giants will bring few changes.
Vodafone is already the second operator in Italy with 27.2% of the market share, Fastweb has just over 3 million.
The merger would certainly lead to the overtaking of Tim which currently dominates with control of 27.9% of the market but there would be no major shocks.
Of course, operators such as Iliad and the newly arrived Sky Mobile could take advantage of the chaos to try to catch up.
That there will be no major shocks can also be seen from the market reaction to the news of the merger.
Tim's stock market remained stable, a signal for investors that the merger will not be able to solve the problems of the telecommunications industry in Italy.
On the landline it will be even worse.
The market is dominated by Tim which holds 40% of the market.
Then follow Vodafone with 15.9% of wi-fi networks and Fastweb with 13.8%.
A merger between them would lead the new company to control 29.7% of the market, therefore well below Tim's 40%.
Of course, however, it would significantly distance WindTre, which is trailing at 14%.
In the medium to long term, this consolidation could lead to an increase in prices although we must be careful of Iliad and Sky who could steal customers and are lurking there ready to offer attractive offers and an ad hoc service.
read also Swisscom prepares purchase of Vodafone and merger with Fastweb What changes for businesses For business services, however, the merger could bring some shocks.
At the moment both Vodafone and Fastweb are very strong.
In the last months of 2023, Vodafone recorded 8% growth in the division while Fastweb already holds a 35% market share.
Their merger would lead them to control a good share of the telecommunications services market dedicated to businesses.
Tim, for this reason, may not stand by and watch and may be forced to react.
Therefore the merger between the two giants worries Tim more on the business services side, where it could react to try to recover market shares.
On the private customer side, however, it already enjoys a clear supremacy on the landline market and is also doing great on mobile.
For this reason there would be no reason to implement aggressive policies in response to the new telecommunications giant that is about to be founded.