On Wednesday, Telenor acquired the remaining 61.3 per cent of shares in Maritime Communication Partner (MCP), thereby obtaining a 100 per cent stake in the mobile operator. MCP is considered one of the leading global suppliers of mobile communication to ferries and cruise ships, a market which is growing rapidly.

The service allows passengers and crew on ferries and ships around the world to make and receive calls and SMS using their mobile telephones. The service works seamlessly and customers perceive services as being the same as when they currently travel abroad. The customer is invoiced by their own home operator according to standards and rates for the relevant mobile operator.

Telenor has industrial ambitions for its acquisition of MCP as the company is considered complimentary to Telenor's existing product range in the international portfolio. MCP offers GSM coverage in international waters, a market where opportunities go well beyond today's ferries and cruise ships. Through MCP, Telenor sees the opportunity to develop services in the interface between GSM and satellite, and to be able to offer solutions in areas that have, for example, poor availability, such as catastrophe solutions and machine-to-machine solutions. Telenor will help develop MCP through expanding the company's existing product range and assist the company in penetrating new markets.

"We are very impressed by MCP's achievements. With a small number of highly skilled employees, they manage to operate as an international operator, with all this entails. We are looking forward to assisting in developing the company further," says Jan Tore Meren, Senior Vice President in Telenor.

"We are very pleased to have Telenor as a strong industrial owner," says Trygve Steen Gustavsen, Managing Director at MCP.