(Bloomberg) -- Telefonica SA and billionaire John Malone’s Liberty Global Plc are exploring a combination of their U.K. operations, people with knowledge of the matter said, in a deal that would reshape the British telecommunications industry.The companies are discussing bringing together Telefonica’s O2 wireless unit and Liberty Global’s Virgin Media business, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the information is private. If they reach an agreement, a transaction could be announced as soon as next week, the people said.Liberty Global’s class A shares rose almost 15% in New York trading Friday, while Telefonica’s American depositary receipts closed up 6.4%.A tie-up would add to a long history of dealmaking by Malone, who earned the nickname “Cable Cowboy” while at the forefront of the American pay-television industry in the 1990s. Combining forces in the U.K. would help Telefonica pare its debt and deliver on a new strategy meant...
After a decade of trucking companies complaining that the government unfairly counted crashes against their safety record that were not their fault, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration unveiled a permanent Crash Preventability Determination Program. ...
