<p>French telecoms operators Bouygues , Iliad-Free and Orange said on Friday they had made an increased 20.35 billion euro ($23.97 billion) bid to buy SFR from billionaire Patrick Drahi's Altice France.</p><p>If it goes ahead, the proposed deal would shake up one of the most competitive telecoms markets in Europe as operators in France have been engaged in a price war for several years, pressuring margins and revenue growth.</p><p>It would also represent the largest telecoms acquisition in France since France Telecom's $37 billion acquisition of Orange from Vodafone in 2000. Altice France CEO Arthur Dreyfuss and SFR CEO Mathieu Cocq confirmed in a letter to employees seen by Reuters that exclusive talks were under way with the trio. Altice had rejected an earlier 17 billion euro offer in October.</p><p>Any deal would be subject to consultation with the relevant employee representative bodies and would then need clearance from antitrust authorities, the bidders said, adding that an exclusivity period for negotiations lasts until May 15.</p><p>The proposed deal would give Bouygues Telecom a 42% stake in SFR, with Iliad and Orange taking 31% and 27% respectively. Other assets, mainly fibre network ones and SFR's operations in French overseas regions, are not included in the offer.</p><p>Each operator acquiring a portion of SFR will undergo a separate antitrust review, an Orange spokesperson told Reuters.</p><p>Bouygues shares were down around 1% following the announcement, while Orange's rose around 0.5%.</p>
<p>French telecoms operators Bouygues , Iliad-Free and Orange said on Friday they had made an increased 20.35 billion euro ($23.97 billion) bid to buy SFR from billionaire Patrick Drahi's Altice France.</p><p>If it goes ahead, the proposed deal would shake up one of the most competitive telecoms markets in Europe as operators in France have been engaged in a price war for several years, pressuring margins and revenue growth.</p><p>It would also represent the largest telecoms acquisition in France since France Telecom's $37 billion acquisition of Orange from Vodafone in 2000. Altice France CEO Arthur Dreyfuss and SFR CEO Mathieu Cocq confirmed in a letter to employees seen by Reuters that exclusive talks were under way with the trio. Altice had rejected an earlier 17 billion euro offer in October.</p><p>Any deal would be subject to consultation with the relevant employee representative bodies and would then need clearance from antitrust authorities, the bidders said, adding that an exclusivity period for negotiations lasts until May 15.</p><p>The proposed deal would give Bouygues Telecom a 42% stake in SFR, with Iliad and Orange taking 31% and 27% respectively. Other assets, mainly fibre network ones and SFR's operations in French overseas regions, are not included in the offer.</p><p>Each operator acquiring a portion of SFR will undergo a separate antitrust review, an Orange spokesperson told Reuters.</p><p>Bouygues shares were down around 1% following the announcement, while Orange's rose around 0.5%.</p>