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Israel: Cellcom network sharing deal with Xfone gets antitrust approval

By  |  October 30, 2016

Israel’s antitrust commissioner has approved Cellcom Israel’s network sharing and hosting agreement with Marathon 018 Xfone, the country’s biggest mobile phone provider said on Sunday.

The agreement, originally announced in July, still requires approval of the Communications Ministry.

Xfone, which was awarded fourth generation frequencies in a 2015 tender, hasn’t entered the cellular market yet.

The 10-year agreement stipulates that the two companies will cooperate in development of a shared 4G network, using both parties’ 4G frequencies.

Cellcom’s bid to acquire rival Golan Telecom was blocked by Israel’s telecoms regulator, who argued that such a deal ran contrary to its efforts to introduce more competition to the market.

Full Content: Reuters

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