Vodacom is in talks to buy a controlling stake in South Africa’s Neotel, said Bloomberg, in what would be the latest example of parent Vodafone bolstering mobile market share with the addition of fixed services.

South Africa’s largest mobile operator is negotiating to buy Tata Communications’ stake of more than 60 per cent in fixed operator Neotel for more than ZAR5 billion ($500 million), according to the report.

Neotel offers voice and broadband services to consumer, small business and corporate users. It also offers wholesale services.

Vodafone has been increasingly active in the fixed market across its geographic footprint. In addition to the recent deal to take control of Kabel Deutschland, Germany’s largest cable operator, Vodafone is setting aside some of the proceeds from the sale of its stake in Verizon Wireless to invest in fixed infrastructure.

The emphasis by Vodafone will either be in buying physical infrastructure or building a presence in the fixed market via unbundling or wholesale access to an incumbent’s network. The focus is on European markets, although some investment will go on emerging markets, said the operator.

None of the parties in South Africa commented on the possibility of a takeover. Talks are set to become exclusive, it was reported.

Neotel is thought to have been available to buyers for most of this year. The country’s second largest operator, MTN, confirmed in August it was no longer in talks about taking over the fixed network operator.

Vodafone holds a 65 per cent stake in Vodacom.