Ovum comment on Rene Obermann joining Ziggo

Rene Obermann's decision to step down from his role at Deutsche Telekom is not a surprise," according to Steven Hartley, telecoms strategy analyst at Ovum. "Yet his next destination has raised a few eyebrows."

Hartley continues: "However, we think the move is a good fit. Herr Obermann has expressed his interest in becoming more entrepreneurial and hands-on, so a fast growing cable operator in the fiercely competitive Dutch market certainly offers the opportunity for thrills. Moving from a telco to a cable company is hardly a quantum leap nowadays as each competes in the same space, albeit coming from historically different perspectives.

"Ziggo has not had everything its own way though. In its latest results it lost 27000 Digital TV subscribers, despite increasing bundle customers and overall revenues. Yet Herr Obermann's steering of Deutsche Telekom has the seen the company take a refreshingly pragmatic outlook to its role in the telecoms ecosystem and applying that to the fast-moving Dutch market could see Ziggo on a steady path for the future."