Thus (company)

Thus

Company type	Subsidiary (formerly publicly traded)
Industry	Telecommunications
Predecessor	Scottish Power Telecommunications Holdings Ltd
Founded	1994
Founder	Rod Matthews
Defunct	2013
Fate	Absorbed into Vodafone
Successor	Vodafone
Headquarters	Glasgow , United Kingdom
Area served	United Kingdom
Key people	Rod Matthews (founder and CEO until 1999)
Products	Internet services for small businesses
Owner	Cable & Wireless Worldwide (until acquisition by Vodafone)
Parent	Cable & Wireless Worldwide (until 2013)

Thus was a telecommunications firm based in the United Kingdom, with its headquarters located in Glasgow, Scotland. Once publicly traded on the London Stock Exchange, it eventually became a subsidiary of Cable & Wireless Worldwide (CWW). Following Vodafone's acquisition of Cable & Wireless Worldwide in July 2012, Thus was completely absorbed into Vodafone by 1 April 2013.

History

Established in 1994 under the name Scottish Power Telecommunications Holdings Ltd and operating as Scottish Telecom, it originated as a division of ScottishPower. In 1998, the company purchased Demon Internet. The founder, Rod Matthews, held the position of CEO until 1999. On 4 October 1999, Scottish Telecom adopted the brand name "thus" and soon after made its debut on the London Stock Exchange.

In 2002, the company separated from Scottish Power, which resulted in a significant reduction of its debt and an improvement in its financial health. August 2004 saw the sale of its call centre unit to Response Handling Ltd. Growth continued through acquisitions with the purchase of Your Communications and Legend Communications in 2006.

On 28 May 2008, Cable & Wireless plc announced a bid to acquire Thus at 165p per share, which was initially declined. By 30 June 2008, Cable & Wireless had secured a 29.9% ownership stake and raised its offer to £329 million (180p per share). The acquisition was finalized on 1 October 2008, after which Thus operated under the name "Thus, a Cable & Wireless business".

Operations

The company specialized in delivering Internet services mainly to small business clients. A substantial number of key customers were later migrated to Cable & Wireless Worldwide.