€1,000 gets you an IT firm

By Timothy Sifert

Netia is considering paring some of the staff it inherited as a result of its acquisition of IT firm TDC Internet Polska, said Wojciech Mądalski, Netia's chief executive officer.

Earlier this month Netia, the country's largest alternative telecom, acted on its stated strategy to snap up ailing telecom-related concerns by buying the local subsidiary of Denmark-based internet service provider TDC. With the purchase, Netia is seeking to procure additional fixed-line Internet access clients and add Internet Protocol-based Virtual Private Network (VPN) products.

Mądalski declined to say how many jobs would be cut. However, prior to its acquisition by Netia, TDC Internet Polska had already started trimming its staff, which now numbers 240. Netia is evaluating that situation.

On April 8, Netia acquired 17,424,332 shares of TDC Internet Polska from the Danish company, using its existing capital.

TDC Internet had originally purchased 100% of the IT company Net2Net for €38 million in two separate transactions in 2001 and 2002, and then renamed it TDC Internet Polska.