(Telecompaper) VimpelCom and CK Hutchison have entered into exclusive talks with French telecom group Iliad over the possibility of acquiring Italian frequencies and infrastructure assets and setting up a fourth mobile operator in the country, according to two unnamed sources cited by Reuters. Previous reports have indicated that Wind and 3 Italia, the Italian subsidiaries of VimpelCom and CK Hutchison, have offered to sell assets including 8,000 network sites, frequencies and a roaming deal in a bid to convince EC regulators to approve their proposed merger. The European Commission will now decide whether Iliad, owned by French billionaire Xavier Niel, can compete effectively with the other three network operators, including Telecom Italia.