Easynet has announced its sale from BSkyB to Lloyds Development Capital (LDC), the private equity arm of Lloyds Banking Group for £100 million.

Chief Executive Officer, David Rowe, who founded Easynet in 1994, will remain in the role with the full backing of LDC. Since Easynet joined the BSkyB family in 2006 it has grown by over 40 per cent.

Rowe said: "Our strategy has always been to take a pragmatic approach to the market. We follow our customers, understand their needs, and provide solutions that add value. Our tight focus on our customers will continue under our new ownership.

"LDC's strategy is closely aligned to our business plan and this will allow us to take a longer-term view of the investments we make to give our customers competitive edge."

David Molony, Principal Analyst at Ovum, observed: "This is a characteristically dynamic deal that introduced telcos to the idea that a customer service desk could be the key to retention and growth.

"Enterprise customers will be reassured by the move because it points to a focused growth and development strategy. Some managers in Easynet's competitors' global services divisions might be reflecting with envy on the independence and competitive agility that Easynet has won and which this deal celebrates."

Easynet retains the International network and Data Centre assets and in the UK continues with an exclusive and long term relationship with Sky for the use of Sky's access network. Easynet also retains the core IP infrastructure and network management functions responsible for routing traffic intelligently around customers' networks.

Daniel Sasaki, Director, LDC, commented: "Easynet is a dynamic, profitable business which has enjoyed considerable success by providing highly innovative solutions that make its customers more competitive.

"We have made a long-term investment in the company as we believe there is considerable untapped global demand for its value proposition."