Tiscali has coughed up €8.86m in shares to buy Vodafone's fixed line Spanish ISP Airtelnet.

The giant Italy-based ISP says the acquisition will strengthen its position in the Spanish market and will help accelerate its bid to improve the company's profitability.

As part of the deal Tiscali will not take on board any of Airtelnet's liabilities or its employees. This will allow for a "smooth and seamless integration process resulting in an immediate positive impact on Tiscali Spain's accounts", the company said in a statement.

Airtelnet has around 110,000 dial-up punters of which 5,000 or so are business users. ®