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Wireless Federation » archive for 'Post-paid'

Cincinnati Bell posts a rise of 4% in net income (USA)

  • November 1st, 2008
  • 6:20 am

Cincinnati Bell has announced its third quarter results. Bell posted a rise of 4% year on year with net income of USD27 million. The revenue climbed 1% to USD346.5 million, driven by growth of USD21 million in service revenue from wireless, wireline data, long distance, VoIP, and data centre and managed services. Revenue in the wirless division shows an increase of 8% to USD80.8 million from USD75.1 million twelve months previously. Overall, EBITDA for this quarter comes to USD120 million.

According to Jack Cassidy, Cincinnati Bell President and Chief Executive Officer, ‘Cincinnati Bell’s third-quarter results demonstrate solid performance in the face of challenging times in the US economy.’ The operator had total of 567,000 wireless customers. Cellco’s pre-paid subscribers plunged 8% year-on-year, while its post-paid mobile subscriber base increased to 6%. Pre-paid Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) was USD26.33 and Post paid ARPU was USD48.82.

Verizon revenue grows to 12.5% in 3Q’08 (USA)

  • October 30th, 2008
  • 7:27 am

Verizon reported 12.5% increase in revenue over what it had in during Q3 of the prior year. Part of this was driven by a 28.3% growth in data revenue ARPU versus the prior year, and a total data revenue growth of 42.5% when compared with the prior year.

Taking into account the subscriber base, Verizon Wireless reaches the mark of 70.8 million customers by adding a total of 2.1 million new customers for the quarter. The operator can also swank the lowest contract subscriber churn rate in the country, at 1.03%. Even including pre-paid customers, the company’s blended churn rate remains a very low 1.33%.

Verizon has completed the acquisition of Rural Cellular during the quarter, which accounted for 630,000 of its new subscribers, 120,000 of which it anticipates to lose in an exchange agreement it has worked out with a competing carrier.

DTAC adds 780,425 subscribers in 3Q’08 (Thailand)

  • October 30th, 2008
  • 7:19 am

DTAC, Thailand’s second largest telco in terms of subscribers has announced its third quarter results. Its net profit grows to 4.7% year-on-year to THB1.836 billion (USD53 million), up from THB1.362 billion a year earlier as costs were reduced, but fall 53.0% from THB3.904 billion in the previous quarter, mainly due to a one-time gain in 2Q from a settlement from minor operator DPC.

DTAC subscriber base reaches to the mark of 18.213 million by adding 780,425 subscribers in 3Q08.  Its strong pre-paid take up in provincial areas and strong post-paid net additions, with the cellco’s contract base growing by 7.5% q-o-q to 2.351 million has boosted the customer growth.

Nawras subscribers enjoys lowest prepaid local calls & SMS (Oman)

  • September 8th, 2008
  • 9:41 am

Nawras, the first operator in Oman to introduce SMS and Voice Bundles, offers the lowest prices in the market to the subscribers of  Nawras Mousbak (prepaid) customers. This service is available at just RO 3 for 30 days, benefitting from the same low calling rate which is already enjoyed by Nawras Ajel (postpaid) customers. At 19 baisas per minute calls can be made and to other or fixed line numbers in Oman, the rate will be just 39 baisas per minute. By susbcribing to this offer for 750 baisas, customers can save substantial amounts on text messaging by sending up to 100 SMS for only 7.5 baisa per message. The bundle is valid for 30 days and SMS can be sent to any mobile number in the Sultanate. Unused messages automatically expire at the end of the bundle and any additional SMS sent, over and above the bundle volume, will be charged at the regular rate of 10 baisas.

According to Nawras Consumer Proposition Manager, Aziz al Harrasi, said, “Nawras is thrilled to be the first operator in Oman to introduce SMS and Voice Bundles. We are anticipating that these new services will generate an extremely positive reaction from our prepaid customers. Not only do these bundles give great value as customers know to expect from  Nawras but they also show our continued quest to provide innovative and creative services which really anticipate the evolving needs of our ever-expanding customer base.”

MTN makes a move to expand its post-paid market (South Africa)

  • August 29th, 2008
  • 8:27 am

MTN is planning to make its expansion plan two folds with the aim of improving its post-paid market. Chief Executive Phuthuma Nhleko said, “While there was some subscriber growth in the post-paid market, we could have been more competitive”. MTN (SA) tardly taking up the market share from Vodacom, as Vodacom share percentage dip one percent and MTN’s share went up one percent. Analyst believes that MTN’s aggressive expansion would place the company, which operates in 21 emerging markets, in a good position once worldwide deregulation of the industry brought more competition into its markets. MTN hasn’t experienced the massive geographical expansion characterising its last reporting periods, but that certainly doesn’t mean it’s not been active, Nhleko added.

MNP to improve service quality (Malaysia)

  • August 29th, 2008
  • 7:13 am

Mobile phone users can now enjoy the freedom of switching network service providers without having to relinquish their original phone number, including the prefix number. For the pre-paid mobile users of Klang Valley who can use this service but post-paid users will soon to take the benefit.  Energy, Water and Communications Minister Datuk Shaziman Abu Mansor said the service, known as Mobile Number Portability (MNP), would take away the inconvenience associated with switching service providers and consumers’ concern over losing their contacts when doing so. Service providers are allowed to charge up to RM25 each time subscribers change their mobile phone service provider. This will give the users choice and freedom to choose their service providers without the inconvenience of having to change their numbers, Shaziman added. MNP was about to improve service quality, better packages, better customer service and giving consumers choice, adding that initially only individual account holders would be able to use the service while business accounts could do so after the nationwide launch, Shaziman further said.

Ericom revenues up by 4% (Ireland)

  • August 28th, 2008
  • 12:53 pm

Irish telco Eircom posted full year results for the period ended 30 June 2008, which shows that revenues rose 4% to USD3.03 billion. EBITDA rose EUR698 million. Rise in earning was driven by a strong performance from the company’s wireless division Meteor. Due to the growth in  subscribers and usage revenues rose by 24% to EUR481 also earnings million were up by 78% at EUR116 million. Total number of subscribers reaches to 983,000 at the end of June, Post-Paid subscribers  stood at 123,000, up 23%. With the higher proportion of post-pay subscribers and increased subscriber activity ARPU lifts 4% for the twelve-month period to 30 June 2008.

Each mobile subscriber averaged 137 SMS per month in Q2′08 (Portugal)

  • August 21st, 2008
  • 11:26 am

According to a market regulator, Portugal had 14.3 million mobile telephony subscribers at the end of June, an increase of 4.8 percent on the previous quarter and 15.5 percent year-on-year.

Statistics shows (Q2′08)

  • Post-paid users increased by 2.9%
  • 151,000 post-paid subscribers are added
  • Prepaid cards grow 4.6 percent
  • More than 1.83 billion calls are made
  • Each mobile subscriber send more than four messages per day
  • Mobile phone users sent 5.86 billion SMS

Telus beats Bell Canada and Rogers Communications in Q2′08 contract subscribers add (Canada)

  • August 11th, 2008
  • 12:58 pm

Telus Communications, Canada, has posted net profit of CAD267 million (USD250 million) for Q2′08,  up from CAD253 million in the same quarter of 2007, on revenues that increased by 7.7% year-on-year to CAD2.40 billion.

EBITDA reached CAD918 million, up 3.7% from 2Q07. Wireless turnover has climbed 9% in the same period to CAD1.15 billion, driving EBITDA up 7.6% to CAD485 million. Mobile operations were boosted by higher data revenues and the recent launch of Telus’s discount brand Koodo Mobile.

The company said it added 176,000 new wireless subscribers in Q2, including 157,000 post-paid subscribers, higher than the 2Q contract user net additions reported by rivals Bell Canada and Rogers Communications.

   

JD Powers and Associates: Mobile calls fall for first time in 10 years

  • May 4th, 2007
  • 1:39 pm

LONDON: 3 May 2007 — Virgin ranks highest in customer satisfaction for its mobile telephone service in both the pre-pay and contract service sectors, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2007 UK Mobile Telephone Customer Satisfaction StudySM released today.

The study, now in its 10th year, measures the customer satisfaction of pre-pay and contract customers with the UK’s leading mobile network providers. Overall satisfaction for pre-pay providers is measured based on performance in six factors: image; offerings and promotions; call quality/coverage; cost; handset; and customer service. Satisfaction in the contract segment includes the additional factor of billing.

Among pre-pay providers, Virgin moves from third place in 2006 to first place in 2007 with an overall index score of 724 points on a 1,000-point scale. Virgin performs well in all six factors. O2 (699 index points) follows Virgin in the rankings. Tesco Mobile, which is included in the study for the first time, ranks a close third with 696 index points.

Virgin also ranks highest in the contract sector, with an overall index score of 730 points. Virgin receives particularly high ratings in six of the seven factors in this segment: image; cost; offerings and promotions; customer service; billing; and handset. O2 (683) and T-Mobile (679) follow Virgin in the segment rankings.

The study also finds that nearly one-half of all mobile users (46%) received some form of incentive or reward from their network provider to encourage loyalty, with contract customers (51%) more likely to receive rewards than pre-pay customers (44%). The most frequent incentive/reward cited by pre-pay customers is “extra credit for spending a certain amount? (22%), while contract customers are most frequently offered handset upgrades (22%).

“With increasing numbers of consumers reporting their intention to switch providers, it’s becoming even more important for providers to reward existing customers for their loyalty,? said Caspar Tearle, director of service industries research at J.D. Power and Associates. “One-tenth of pre-pay customers and more than one-fifth (21%) of contract customers intend to change in the next 12 months. Our research also shows that rewarding mobile customers has a positive impact on levels of customer satisfaction and could entice potential customers to switch networks.?

The study also finds several key mobile phone usage patterns:

The average number of weekly calls made by pre-pay customers has dropped from 14 in 2006 to 10 per week, and the average number of text messages has stayed the same at 27. Among contract customers, the number of calls made per week has dropped from 35 in 2006 to 27 in 2007, while text messages have increased considerably, from 32 to 46.
More than two-thirds of mobile phones now have a camera feature (72%) and the ability to download games and ringtones (69%). Usage of these services has also increased, with 66 percent of users now taking photos and 47 percent sending photos to others. However, fewer than one-quarter of users (23%) actually download ringtones.
Nearly one-half of all mobile users (47%) have upgraded their handsets in the past 12 months.
Pre-pay customers pay an average of £12.35 per month, representing an annual spend of £150, with O2 customers spending the most (£13.95) and Virgin customers the least (£10.90). Contract customers spend £32.45 per month—Orange customers spending the most (£37) and Virgin customers spending the least (£26.50).
The 2007 UK Mobile Telephone Customer Satisfaction Study is based on 2,706 telephone interviews conducted between March and April 2007 with pre-pay and contract mobile phone customers.

About J.D. Power and Associates
The European headquarters of J.D. Power and Associates is located in Guildford, UK. With world headquarters in Westlake Village, California, U.S.A., J.D. Power and Associates is an ISO 9001-registered global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, training and customer satisfaction. The firm’s quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.

About The McGraw-Hill Companies:
Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor’s, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2006 were $6.3 billion. Additional information is available at http://www.mcgraw-hill.com.