Level 3 Communications may be acquisition candidate; Google and Qwest may bid - report

Level 3 Communications, the US listed fibre optic company, may be an acquisition candidate, the Wall Street Journal reported. The report said that speculation that Level 3 might be acquired has helped to double its share price over the last year. The report said that Google, the listed internet company, could be a possible bidder. Google refused to comment, the report continued. Qwest, the listed US telecoms operator, is also believed to be looking for targets, with Level 3 believed to be figuring among them. Qwest also refused to comment, the report added. However, the report noted that some market operators believe that take-over speculation is over-hyped. Level 3 has a market cap of USD 6.766bn.