Tom Leins

Tom Leins is a Senior Research Analyst for TeleGeography’s GlobalComms Database. Based out of the company’s UK office, he also contributes to the company’s daily CommsUpdate newsletter, which includes his popular weekly MVNO Monday round-up. MVNO industry aside, Tom has developed a strong specialization in the U.S., Latin America, and the Caribbean, tracking mergers and acquisitions, spectrum auctions, regulatory developments, market opportunities, and growth trends.

Recent Posts

Debt, Distrust, and Dealmaking: the Battle for Digicel Pacific

As GlobalComms Database users know, TeleGeography recently reclassified its regions. 

This basically means we kicked off 2021 with some Marie Kondo-level tidying by aligning our country-to-region mapping across all of our research. For the GlobalComms team, this included spinning out Oceania from Asia. 

Indeed, the exercise gave me the opportunity to check in on happenings in Oceania. And this is why I thought it was the perfect time to take a closer look at one of the region’s major developments: the likely sale of Digicel Pacific.

Tower Talk: Meet the Companies Buying Latin America’s Cell Towers

Latin America has been a hotbed of M&A activity in recent years.

And it isn’t just telecom operators that are changing hands—the tower sector has also accounted for a number of eye-catching deals across the region.

2020: The Essential CommsUpdate Selection

TeleGeography’s daily CommsUpdate newsletter has featured a staggering 76,000 telecom stories since making its debut back in December 2002! 

As a tumultuous year draws to a close, we’re looking back at the telecom stories that captured our readers’ attention during 2020. From shareholder shenanigans to mega-mergers, from tax disputes to 5G launches, the CommsUpdate team left no stone unturned in their quest to bring you the biggest daily news stories.

The Brazilian Broadband Bonanza: Meet Regional Players with Big Plans

The Brazilian telecom sector is a hotbed of deal-making activity in 2020. And regional consolidation is a theme.

While industry observers are focused on the high-profile auction of Oi’s mobile assets—which is scheduled to take place on December 14—a series of broadband-centric deals have taken place under the radar.

Today, we explore the companies who are pulling the strings.

Broadband Britain: Who is Buying the UK’s ISPs?

Earlier this month, UK fixed-line operator TalkTalk received a proposal from its minority shareholder Toscafund Asset Management.

Toscafund made an offer of GBP0.97 per share in a bid to take the company private. If approved by the company’s owners—who include founder Sir Charles Dunstone, the telco’s majority shareholder—the deal will value TalkTalk at a cool GBP1.1 billion.

Merger Mania: Has Altice USA Triggered the Next Phase of Cable Consolidation?

Altice USA recently saw its shocking takeover bid for Canada’s Cogeco rejected by the latter’s controlling shareholders, the Audet Family.

The unusually-structured deal would have seen U.S. cable player Altice retain Cogeco’s U.S. business, Atlantic Broadband. However, it would sell the company’s Canadian assets to Rogers Communications, which came as a surprise to industry observers in both markets.

Sprint Reaches the Finish Line: The Rise and Fall of an American Telco

On April 1, T-Mobile US and Sprint Corporation completed their long-awaited merger.

It was the beginning of the end for the familiar Sprint brand.

The Companies Competing to Break One of Africa’s Last Mobile Monopolies

After years of speculation that market liberalization was coming in Ethiopia, in May 2020 authorities kick-started the long-awaited licensing process. The Ethiopian Communications Authority (ECA) issued a request for expressions of interest (EoI) for two new telecom licenses.

With the deadline now passed, we look at the bidders vying to disrupt one of Africa’s last mobile monopolies.

The Billion Dollar Bidding War for America’s 5G Spectrum

Following back-to-back 5G-suitable spectrum auctions, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) revealed the registered bidders ahead of this summer’s planned 3.5GHz sale.

Today, we look at 5G auctions to date and identify the operators who are spending big to strengthen their spectrum portfolios.

A Maverick Operator is Hoping to Challenge the Status Quo in Colombia

With a wireless population penetration rate exceeding 120% and a competitive landscape that includes five mobile network operators and several prominent MVNOs, few people would consider Colombia an enticing target market.

One intrepid telco disagrees.

 

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