Merger with Idea: Vodafone goes defensive with its India play

The Indian operation will cease to be a subsidiary for the British parent

British telecom giant Vodafone plc would be hoping to bring an end to the problems it has faced since it bought Hutchison's stake in the company a decade ago.

Since Vodafone made its $11.1 billion acquisition of Hutchison’s operations in 2007 and paid another $5.5 billion to buy out Ruia’s stake later, the British company has seldom made money on its India operations and had to take two large impairments. Last year it invested another $7.2 billion. Vodafone has invested over $24 billion in India.

Apart from buying stake, Vodafone plc invested billions of dollars to buy spectrum