Berlusconi Telecom Italia Move Will Further Politicize Battle

BERLUSCONI TELECOM ITALIA MOVE WILL FURTHER POLITICIZE BATTLE
[SOURCE: Wall Street Journal, AUTHOR: Gabriel Kahn gabriel.kahn@wsj.com]
Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi offered to use his vast media empire to help ensure Telecom Italia SpA doesn't fall into foreign hands, but his involvement will only further politicize the heated battle for control of the company. Mr. Berlusconi's offer is the latest theatrical twist in what has become a long-running soap opera that pits Telecom Italia's major shareholder, Marco Tronchetti Provera, against Italy's center-left government. Prime Minister Romano Prodi has been trying to prevent Mr. Tronchetti Provera from selling part of his controlling stake in Telecom Italia to foreign players. Instead, Mr. Prodi's government has rallied a group of Italian banks to try to ensure that the country's former phone monopoly remains under Italian control.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB117703010706976294.html?mod=todays_us_marketplace
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