Virgin Mobile USA completes Helio acquisition

Virgin Mobile USA said its acquisition of rival MVNO Helio is now complete, with Helio shareholders SK Telecom and EarthLink receiving limited partnership units and shares equivalent to 13 million shares of Virgin Mobile USA common stock valued at $38 million based on the average closing price as of two trading days before and two trading days after the deal's June 27 announcement. In addition, SK Telecom and Virgin Group will each invest $25 million in Virgin Mobile USA for preferred shares. Beyond adding Helio's differentiated postpaid offer to the Virgin Mobile USA portfolio, the deal also heralds revised rates from network operator partner Sprint resulting in an 8 percent cost-per-minute reduction, roughly 17,000 Helio subscribers and a reduction in net debt totaling between $35 million and $40 million.

For more on the Virgin Mobile USA/Helio agreement:
- read this release

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