Bite in good hands, probably

Well, I am back in Riga, but not my luggage (delay in Amsterdam) nor a bag of Target purchases (left at my parents' house).
The news I missed (but anticipated) was the sale of the Bite Group for EUR 450 million to Mid Europa Partners, a private equity group. They are sufficiently transparent so that one can see they have experience in managing telecom assets. That's good news, also a signal that telecoms are of considerable interest to those who make money with their money (private equity) rather than put their money into just telecoms for one reason or another. In other words, the sector is looking bright again.
Not so bright, or non-existant are the chances that Lattelecom could acquire a mobile operator. It was in talks about Bite, but -- probably wisely-- decided not to try to outbid the private equity folks. That leaves Lattelecom with the alternative of joining the merry bunch of virtual operators (I see Telekomunikaciju Grupa -- TG-- has joined the party) mostly hosted on Bite's network.
Next interesting question -- what will happen to the (temporary?) half-mother of Lattelecom, TeliaSonera. The recent boardroom changes reported in the Swedish press are interpreted as foreboding changes in top management, perhaps ahead of a sale of most or all of the remaining state shares in TeliaSonera. The insatiable private equity funds will be out there waiting, I am sure.

Update:
Sweden's Dagens Nyheter calls the January 17 changes in TeliaSonera's boardroom "the most brutal in Swedish corporate history. Board members Carl Bennet, Eva Liljebom, Lennart Låftman, Lars-Erik Nilsson and Sven-Christer Nilsson were voted out and replaced on smaller board by Lars G Nordström, Conny Karlsson, Maija-Liisa Friman and Jan Risfelt. The move is seen by analysts as a purge of board members seen as close to the Social Democratic movement and, thereby, opposed to complete privatization of the company. A sell-off of TeliaSonera has been in the cards since the non-socialist government was formed in the fall of 2006.

Lattelecom looks to plan B or Plan C on mobiles

I'll make this quick as I am up to my arse (the British spelling) in alligators at work because I am heading off to the US tommorrow and have to finish several things.
It looks pretty much like Lattelecom will have to implement plan B (a virtual mobile operator) or plan C (waiting for mobile WiMax). Denmark's TDC will be selling the Bite Group in the next couple of weeks, either to a private equity group or another, big telecom player. Lattelecom could afford to, but is unlikely to pay the close to EUR 500 million one is probably talking about.
Plan B is not so bad, Bite welcomes all comers. The only stumbling block (aside from what strange ideas the new owners of Bite, whoever they will be, may get) are Telia Sonera's objections to Lattelecom going into the mobile market anything less than a year after it will be traded back to 100 % government ownership.
This is silly, as TeliaSonera will then become 100 % owner of Latvian Mobile Telephone, which, in terms of revenues and profitability, is the MMFITV. This is from an sacriligious version of the 23rd Psalm-- Yea (this is not a cheering yea, it is a Biblical "yea") though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil, for I am the Meanest Motherfucker in The Valley. " As the MMFITV of the Latvian mobile market, LMT doesn't need this shit, it can do fine against Bite/Lattelecom without TeliaSonera's help.
Oh, and by the way, the word is out that TeliaSonera is on the selling block as well with the same crowd of Telefonica, France Telecom, Deutsche Telekom and the private equity money gathering for the sale.