The mobile communication business recorded further customer growth in the first half of 2011. The mobile customer base increased by 4.2% from about 5 million subscribers as of June 30, 2010 to about 5.2 million customers as of June 30, 2011. The number of mobile broadband customers rose by 19.7% to more than 700,000 subscribers.
Revenues in the Austrian segment declined by 4.5% to 1,469.4 million in the first six months of 2011 compared to the same period of the previous year mainly due to regulatory measures, lower mobile tariffs and the persisting decline in fixed net voice minutes.
In the first half of 2011, EBITDA comparable dropped by 9.8% to EUR 497.8 million mainly due to regulatory measures. Strict cost management could counteract the pressure on earnings.
Bulgaria:
In the period under review, the Bulgarian segment was marked by opposite trends. While Mobiltel's customer base increased by 1% to 5.3 million subscribers and the number of mobile broadband customers more than doubled, ARPU declined by 10.6% due to intensive competition and lower usage. Revenues in the Bulgarian segment dropped by 4.8% to EUR 263.9 million. Mobiltel's revenue figures for the first six months of 2011 also include the results of two fiber optic operators Megalan AD and Spektrumnet AD, which were acquired the previous year. Together they account for a total of 101,200 fixed net lines, of which 95,700 are broadband lines.
In the first half 2011, the Bulgarian market was impacted by a laggard domestic economy and regulatory cuts. In addition, fierce competition spurred by smaller operators in the market characterized the operational environment. As a result, EBITDA comparable declined by 9.3% to EUR 135.5 million in the period under review.
Belarus:
In the first half of 2011, the most striking event in Belarus was the devaluation of the ruble by 54% as of May 24, 2011 as a result of a strong decline in the level of foreign exchange reserves. Despite this negative effect, the Belarus subsidiary Velcom was able to increase its mobile subscriber base by 7.6%, with the number of mobile broadband lines almost quadrupling. Thanks to the adopted countermeasures - in the form of price increases and CAPEX reductions - Velcom showed a strong operational performance in its local currency. Revenues denominated in the local currency increased by more than 26%, ARPU by 14.3% and EBITDA comparable by 21.3%.
However, due to the devaluation of the Belarusian ruble, this outstanding performance could not be translated into euro. As a result of negative currency translation effects, revenues showed an increase of 1.8% to EUR 162.8 million and EBITDA comparable declined slightly by 2% to EUR 75.4 million in the year under review.
Croatia:
Severe economic headwinds, regulatory and fiscal burdens as well as fierce competition were the key challenges on the Croatian market in the period under review. Due to the negative factors mentioned above, ARPU (average revenue per customer) dropped by 11.5% to EUR 12.8. Against this backdrop, the Croatian subsidiary, Vipnet, was able to increase its mobile customer base by 1% to almost 2.1 million subscribers. The number of mobile broadband customers rose by 17.3 % to over 165,000 subscribers.
Vipnet's revenues decreased by 9.5% to EUR 190.8 million in the first half of 2011. EBITDA comparable fell by 19.8% to EUR 52.0 million. This disproportionate decline is mainly attributable to one-off personnel expenses in connection with a headcount reduction by approximately 10% in the second quarter 2011.
To address the increasing demand for convergent products in Croatia, Vipnet acquired the Croatian cable operator B.net in August 2011 for a total consideration of EUR 93 million. B.net currently provides broadband fixed net offerings and cable TV services to roughly 120,000 households in Croatia.
Slovenia:
Slovenia showed a favorable development in the period under review: customer numbers grew by 6.9% to more than 630,000 and the mobile broadband customer base rose by 19.4%. Si.mobil's market share slightly increased to 29.9%. ARPU remained almost unchanged at EUR 19.8 compared to the same period of the previous year. Revenues in the Slovenian segment rose by 10.1% to EUR 90.0 million in the period under review, with EBITDA comparable dropping by 0.9% to EUR 22.9 million.
Republic of Serbia:
Vip mobile, the Group's subsidiary in the Republic of Serbia, showed a favorable performance and positive results in the first half of 2011. Customer numbers increased by 19.1% to roughly 1.5 million and ARPU rose by 17.4% to EUR 6.9. Revenues grew by 33.6% to EUR 65.6 million driven by customer growth and higher usage. Furthermore, Vip mobile, for the first time, was able to make a significant positive contribution of EUR 11.9 million to Group EBITDA.
Republic of Macedonia:
In the Republic of Macedonia, Vip operator, the most recent greenfield operation of the Group, was able to report strong growth rates. The mobile customer base rose by 42.9% to over 500,000 subscribers and market share increased to 22.7% as of June 30, 2011. ARPU improved by 12.7% to EUR 7.1. Revenues showed a similar favorable development, growing by 58.2% to EUR 24.3 million and EBITDA comparable was break-even.
The current quarterly report is available at http://www.telekomaustria.com/ir/interim-results.php
About Telekom Austria Group
The Telekom Austria Group, listed on the Vienna Stock Exchange since November 2000, is the leading telecommunications provider in Central and Eastern Europe with approx. 22 million customers across its markets of operations. The Group is currently operating in eight countries: in Austria (A1), Slovenia (Si.mobil), Croatia (Vipnet), the Republics of Serbia (Vip mobile) and Macedonia (Vip operator), Bulgaria (Mobiltel), Belarus (Velcom) and Liechtenstein (mobilkom liechtenstein). The total market of the eight countries covers about 41 million inhabitants. The Group has more than 17,000 employees, revenues were EUR 4.7 billion as of year-end 2010. Telekom Austria Group's portfolio encompasses products and services of voice telephony, broadband Internet, multimedia services, data and IT solutions, wholesale as well as m-payment solutions. More detailed information is available at http://www.telekomaustria.com
Contact:
Elisabeth Mattes, Director Corporate Communications and Spokeswoman, Telekom Austria Group mobile: +43-664-6639187, email: elisabeth.mattes@telekomaustria.com
CONTACT: .
