Indosat grows subscriber base, profits drop

Indonesian operator Indosat reported a sharp rise in its mobile subscriber base in the first half, but profits were down on rising costs. Total revenues fell 0.2 percent from a year ago to IDR 5.767 trillion. Mobile revenues were down 0.5 percent to IDR 4.291 trillion, despite the number of subscribers rising 7.7 percent year-on-year to 13.86 million. Data revenues improved 13.1 percent to IDR 927 billion, while fixed telephony sales dropped 15.3 percent to IDR 549 billion. The group’s operating costs rose 8.7 percent to IDR 4.199 trillion. EBITDA fell 2.6 percent to IDR 3.306 trillion, and net profit dropped 30.2 percent to IDR 549 billion. Indosat said marketing efforts started in April to return to growth were starting to have an effect, with 904,000 mobile users added in the second quarter alone. It also announced the launch of a loyalty points programme for mobile users. The group expects an EBITDA margin for the full year of 57-59 percent, versus 57.3 percent in the first half.

Source- http://www.telecompaper.com

Technorati : Indonesia, Indosat, Mobile
Ice Rocket : Indonesia, Indosat, Mobile