Zegona secures place for ex-Jazztel chief on Euskaltel board

Former Jazztel CEO Miguel García has replaced Robert Samuelson as investor Zegona Communications’ proprietary director on the board of regional Spanish cable operator Euskaltel.

García replaced Samuelson, Zegona’s chief operating officer, effective as of yesterday.

Zegona Communications, which recently displaced Basque Country bank Kutxabank as the northers Spanish cable operator’s biggest shareholder after acquiring shares on the open market,has set out a plan to change Euskaltel’s management and adopt a more aggressive national expansion strategy than that of the current management team, using the Virgin brand to compete with existing players in the market.

Zegona has previously made clear a certain frustration with the pace of development of Euskaltel, which it believes has underperformed relative to its potential, and favours a more ambitious plan, including the introduction of former García to the company’s management and the launch of the Virgin brand in Spain.

Euskaltel’s board has adopted a more modest plant to establish a national presence on a region-by-region basis using Orange’s network, starting in five regions in the northern part of the country beyond Euskaltel’s core markets of the Basque Country, Galicia and Asturias.