I REFER to the proposed take over of EE by BT (Echo, Dec 16) in a deal reported to be worth £12.5bn.

I remember when BT had its own Cellnet mobile service which ended with BT selling it on as it did not make money.

What this proposed takeover means to the jobs in the North-East is yet to be disclosed but jobs will go, as sure as eggs are eggs.

One also has to remember the cost of calling out a BT engineer is £90. Yet in its fully owned Yorkshire-based company PlusNet, it’s £30.

The aim, according to BT, is to generate revenues through selling fixed-line services to EE customers.

The down side is most of the EE customers who have broadband will already have a phone line supplied by BT at £15 per month, so the sums do not add up.

And if the service is anything like what BT supply now for sorting out a line fault, a lot of customers are in for a long frustrating time ahead.

John Merry, Darlington