Pantel Technologies, Veecon Media will acquire the complete shareholding of RCom’s Reliance Big TV with business along with existing trade and contingent liabilities.

Reliance Communications has entered into an agreement with Pantel Technologies Pvt Limited and Veecon Media & Television Limited for sale of its subsidiary Reliance BIG TV Limited (RBTV).

Reliance Communications said in a regulatory filing on Monday that it had entered into a binding share purchase agreement to sell 100 per cent equity in its non-core DTH business. Billionaire Anil Ambani-led Reliance Communications (RCom) said the transaction will help the company reduce the liability of unsecured creditors, benefitting all stakeholders.

Reliance BIG TV is engaged in the business of direct-to-home (DTH) services across the country. RCom said the existing DTH license of BIG TV will be renewed and about 500 employees of Reliance BIG TV will be retained.

Pursuant to this transaction, the buyers will acquire the entire shareholding of RBTV with business on an “as-is, where-is” basis, along with existing trade and contingent liabilities,Reliance Communications said in a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange late on Monday.The transaction is subject to regulatory and lenders’ approval, RCom said. It is “in consonance with RCOM’s stated objective to focus on B2B businesses of the new RCOM”, the filing noted.

Pantel Technologies chairman and managing director Vijender Singh said: “Pantel Technologies is a young Information Technology and Communication devices company, selling innovative Tablet PC(s) under the brand name of Penta T-Pad(s) in the Indian, South-East Asian, GCC and African markets. Pantel Technologies has collaborated with Mauritius Telecom-the telecom service provider of Mauritius-bringing digital computing solutions to the Mauritian and African markets at affordable prices.”

The move comes after the company, reeling under debt of around Rs. 46,000 crore, failed to close its wireless business merger deal with Aircel in October.

Reliance Communications (RCom) will shut down its voice call service from December 1 and its subscribers must move to other networks by the end of the year, telecom regulator TRAI (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) had said earlier this month. The Anil Ambani-led company shall provide only 4G data services to its customers and as a result will discontinue providing voice services to the subscribers, TRAI said.

At 10:30 am, shares in RCom were trading 4 per cent lower at Rs. 12.80 on the BSE, whose benchmark index Sensex was down 21.60 points at 33,702.84.