Malta : Melita Cable Plc, Malta’s leading provider in television, broadband and telephony services, recently acquired by GMT Communications Partners, announced today that it has signed a letter of intent for a proposed transaction with 3G Telecommunications Limited. 3G Telecommunications, a subsidiary of investment firm M/C Venture Partners, was recently awarded Malta’s third UMTS license by the Malta Communications Authority. The transaction will enable Melita Cable to roll out Malta’s third wireless communications network and offer a full suite of voice and data communications services.

As a part of the transaction, M/C Venture Partners will acquire a minority interest in Melita Cable and fund the company’s expansion alongside GMT Communications Partners and the Gasan Group. The Malta Communications Authority has issued its preliminary approval for the transaction; completion remains subject to final clearance by the MCA and the Office of Fair Competition.

Commenting on the new agreement, Massimo Prelz of GMT Communications Partners said, "The addition of 3G Telecommunications will enable Melita Cable to become one of the cable industry’s first fully integrated quadruple play operators. We view this as an important opportunity for Melita Cable to build on a successful track record of investment in Malta’s communications market.”

“We were grateful to the MCA for its fair consideration of our application for Malta’s third UMTS license,” said James F. Wade, Managing General Partner, M/C Venture Partners. “We believe that Melita Cable’s operating platform offers the most efficient means of creating further choice for consumers of voice, video and data services. At the same time, we are excited to team up with GMT and the Gasan Group in order to back a highly successful cable business and management team.”

“From an investment standpoint, this is a mutually beneficial opportunity for our consortium and local economic development efforts,” said Joseph Gasan, Chairman of Melita Cable. “Our investment in an advanced mobile communications network is another step forward for Malta’s communications market which represents an important building block for our economy.”

About GMT Communications Partners

GMT Communications Partners is a European independent private equity group focused exclusively on the communications sector, having actively invested in the European marketplace for the past 15 years. GMT is focused on providing buyout and expansion capital for high growth companies. As industry practitioners, GMT focuses heavily on developing new strategic directions for established businesses that are able to benefit from new communication technologies. Since its foundation in 1992, GMT has invested in 25 companies and completed over 100 transactions, exclusively in European media/communications.

About M/C Venture Partners

M/C Venture Partners is a venture capital firm focused exclusively on the communications, media, and information technology sectors. Over the past 25 years, M/C has invested over $1.8 billion into almost 80 emerging growth companies of all stages. The firm is currently investing M/C Venture Partners VI, a $550 million venture capital fund raised in 2006. M/C has strong institutional backing from leading pension funds and university endowments as well as a long track record of success. M/C Venture Partners investment professionals are based in Boston, San Francisco and London.