The process of European fiber consolidation took another step forward today with the announcement that Interoute has acquire Vtesse Group. The moves will give Interoute a substantially expanded presence in the UK both for connectivity and cloud services, whereas until now its pan-European network has been largely limited to London.
Vtesse operates an intercity network spanning much of England and reaching up into southern Scotland. That includes metro footprints in London, Leeds, Manchester, and Plymouth. They also operate a , 30,000 square foot, Tier III+ data center in Hoddesdon, Hertfordshire, about 25 minutes outside of London. That combination of fiber and colo will fit well with Interoute’s business model, which blends cloud services with deep fiber connectivity.
Interoute’s nextgen network has always seemed like a likely consolidation platform, but whereas the flame of M&A burned hot in the US it has smoldered quietly and patiently in Europe. The move to buy Vtesse could signal the company’s readiness to expand its reach in other European markets, or toward more scale in the cloud services space. Their fiber penetration in the British Isles was perhaps their weakest spot in western Europe prior to this deal, and perhaps Ireland would be next on the list given its rising place in infrastructure these days.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but I’m sure we’ll hear about them at some point.
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Categories: Cloud Computing · Fiber Networks · Mergers and Acquisitions · Metro fiber
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I think this multiple could stay buried for some time. I hope I am wrong.