DigitalBurn.com

We have followed rumors concerning Virgin Mobile potentially buying Helio, however today, the rumors were made official.  The company purchased Helio for $39 million in share equity, and plans to merge the Helio brand and it’s 170,000 customers into Virgin Mobile.  The deal should be completed in the 3rd quarter.

SK Telecom, a primary partner of Helio, will receive a 17% stake in the new company, and will have two seats on its board of directors.  Both SK Telecom and Virgin Group have agreed to invest $25 million into the new venture.  The move marks a shift for Virgin, as it will enter the coveted postpaid market.  Virgin claims that the venture saves them 12 months of preparation for the launch of a postpaid service, as well as an 8% cost reduction over its current network costs per unit.  Both companies use Sprint as an airtime supplier.

[via MobileBurn]

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