TEL AVIV - The controlling shareholder in Cool Holding has agreed to buy mobile phone operator MIRS from Motorola's (MOT.N) Israeli subsidiary for $170 million in cash, cable TV company HOT (HOT.TA) said on Thursday.

Cool Holding, which is owned by French businessman Patrick Drahi, controls 44 percent of HOT.

According to analysts, Drahi is interested in turning HOT, which also provides Internet and telephone services, into a leading telecommunications group in Israel to compete with Bezeq Israel Telecom (BEZQ.TA).

Under the agreement, the buyer can transfer the rights and obligations of MIRS to HOT within 60 days of the signing of the deal if HOT agrees, HOT said.

The company is studying ... the repercussions of the acquisition and the alternatives it faces regarding the deal, HOT said in a statement to the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.

Motorola had requested offers for MIRS, the smallest of Israel's four mobile phone operators. It uses iDEN technology and has a market share of 4 to 5 percent. (Reporting by Tova Cohen, editing by Will Waterman)

Motorola Israel