PLDT, ABS-CBN ‘unable to agree’ on revised terms

PLDT Inc. on Tuesday all but confirmed a report that differences over pricing had led to the scuttling of a deal to purchase ABSCBN Corp.’s broadband business.

“Since the parties were unable to agree on the revisions to the commercial terms, the parties mutually decided not to proceed with the proposed transaction,” the Pangilinan-led telco said in a disclosure.

A newspaper item on Tuesday claimed that PLDT wanted to lower the acquisition price of ABS-CBN’s Sky Cable Corp. from P6.75 billion to around P4 billion, among others.

PLDT was reacting to a newspaper blind item on Monday, which claimed that PLDT had wanted to include new conditions and lower the price for ABS-CBN’s Sky Cable Corp. A follow-up on Tuesday said that PLDT, among others, wanted to lower the acquisition price to around P4 billion from P6.75 billion.

Both firms abruptly called off the sale last week and only said that the decision was mutual.

The deal, already cleared by regulators and set to be finalized next month, was expected to expand PLDT’s broadband reach and allow ABS-CBN to rationalize its business and pay off debts.

On Monday, Manuel Pangilinan, PLDT chairman, president and chief executive officer, said the decision was “currently assumed [to be] final.”

He declined to comment on talk about the pricing issue, only saying that it was a “very sensitive matter.”

On Tuesday, PLDT’s share price was down by P7, or 0.54 percent, to P1,287.00 while ABS-CBN’s rose 7 centavos, or 1.57 percent, to P4.52 amid a 0.45-percent drop for the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index.