MTN Ghana subscription increases by 9%
The annual report of MTN Ghana revealed that the company saw a 9% increase in subscribers as of December 2010, bringing the number to 8.7 million.
According to MTN, the increase was largely driven by the introduction of new price plans and a revision allowing subscribers to view discounts in monetary terms rather than percentages.
The report also revealed that MTN Ghana’s performance was encouraging, considering aggressive competition through headline tariff reductions. SIM card registration has also had an impact.
Revenue increased by 14% ahead of subscriber growth, mostly due to increases in airtime and subscription revenue. SMS revenue also increased significantly, contributing 5% to revenue.
According to Phuthuma Nhleko, MTN Group President and CEO, the Group’s strong operational performance was underpinned by a 22% increase in subscribers to 141.6 million from 116.0 million in the prior year, as well as improved efficiencies due to various cost initiatives and despite higher levels of mobile penetration, aggressive competition and increased regulatory requirements. MTN continued to maintain network quality and capacity and to offer attractive segmented value propositions to customers.
Vodacom SA seeks for new MD
Vodacom has started the process of searching a replacement for Shameel Joosub, who will leave Vodacom SA at the end of March.
Vodacom SA has started the process of searching for a new MD, a task it must complete within the next three months, as Shameel Joosub will take over the reins at Vodafone Spain at the beginning of April.
Vodacom SA is the largest subsidiary in the Vodacom group and is also SA’s biggest cellular network, with 23.8 million subscribers at the end of September last year, giving it a market share of 49%.
Joosub, an Executive Director of the Vodacom group and MD of Vodacom SA, will move to Vodafone, Vodacom’s single largest shareholder, to take up the post as CEO of Vodafone Spain, one of Vodafone’s largest operating companies.
The move, which Vodacom describes as a promotion, will see Joosub leave the board and relinquish his post as Vodacom SA MD at the end of March.
Richard Boorman, executive head of corporate communications, states a process to replace Joosub has been initiated, but he cannot provide any additional details yet.
Joosub has been with Vodacom since its inception in 1994 and has been described by the company as a key architect in growing the business. He joined the company as an accounting clerk and was promoted to head up the commercial arm of Vodacom SA in 2000, after holding several positions within the telco.
From 2000 to 2005, Joosub was responsible for increasing Vodacom’s South African subscriber base from 2.5 million to almost nine million. After being promoted to MD of Vodacom SA in 2005, Joosub oversaw the growth of the business to 24 million subscribers.
Joosub was the third head of a telecoms company to announce his resignation in 2010, as both Telkom CEO, Reuben September, and MTN CEO and president, Phuthuma Nhleko, announced their resignations.
American Tower, MTN to form JV in Ghana
American Tower Corp. and South Africa-based MTN Group have entered an agreement to set up a joint venture in Ghana. TowerCo Ghana, which will be managed by American Tower, will be 51:49 owned by American Tower and MTN.
The transaction involves the sale of up to 1,876 of MTN Ghana’s existing base station sites to TowerCo Ghana for an agreed purchase price of up to about US$428.3 million, of which American Tower will pay up to about US$218.5 million for its 51% stake in the holding company.
According to Jim Taiclet, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of American Tower Corporation, they are pleased to announce the launch of their operations in Ghana in partnership with MTN, Africa’s largest mobile operator. Creating an independent tower company in Ghana reflects the execution of their strategy to invest in selected African markets with strong wireless growth potential and a positive investment climate. As a partner, MTN’s stature, vision and operational experience in Africa are highly complementary. Combined with their tower leasing expertise, they believe TowerCo Ghana is exceptionally well placed to maximize the market opportunity in Ghana.
According to Group President and CEO of MTN Group, Phuthuma Nhleko, infrastructure sharing makes absolute sense for MTN and was a key aspect of the updated strategy outlined to MTN shareholders on 15 July 2010. They have in the recent past looked at various permutations to reduce their infrastructure roll-out costs as well as the ongoing costs of operating their passive infrastructure in key markets. Because market conditions in each of the markets are unique, they have resolved to evaluate infrastructure sharing opportunities on a market by market basis. The Ghanaian market has presented them with an opportunity to partner with a leading independent global tower operator.
MTN appoints Ignatius Sehoole as the new Vice President
Mobile operator MTN has appointed Ignatius Sehoole as VP of the South and East Africa region. Sehoole will take up the position in November. He will succeed Tim Lowry, whose contract came to an end in June. Sehoole was working with PricewaterhouseCoopers, as joint deputy chief executive.
According to MTN Group President and CEO Phuthuma Nhleko , the company is pleased to have someone of Ignatius’s caliber to join the MTN Group. MTN welcomes him to the MTN family and wish him all the success as he embarks on his new role as regional vice-president south and east Africa.
The company has also revealed Santie Botha, group chief marketing officer, will be leaving them after seven years of service to pursue new endeavors.
According to Mr Nhleko, Santie has made the most appreciated contribution to the group, assisting to embed the MTN brand across the group’s footprint, culminating with MTN being one of the sponsors of the successful 2010 Fifa World Cup.
MTN- Reliance deal fuelled after Ambanis’ ceasefire
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The resolving of the dispute between the Ambani brothers has been expected to be the reason behind the sudden 6% increase in the share price of MTN, South Africa’s leading telecoms company and the biggest mobile operator on the continent.
According to a deal between Mukesh Ambani and Anil Ambani, both of them will do away with non-compete†agreements they had signed when they divided their late father’s empire between them in 2005. India’s second-largest mobile operator, Reliance Communication owned by Anil Ambani has also been included in the agreement. Older brother Mukesh had enacted a right of first refusal when Anil had tried to sell a large stake in Reliance to MTN two years earlier calling it an incompetent deal.
In the current scenario, it is unlikely that Mukesh will come up with any objections and if the deal materializes, it would create one of the world’s largest emerging-markets mobile groups with about 230m subscribers. However, many believe MTN would be more than reluctant to consider returning to the negotiation table with an Indian company.
Three attempts had been made in the past by Phuthuma Nhleko, MTN’s chief executive to tie up with an Indian company; once with Reliance and two times with Bharti Airtel, the biggest company in the subcontinent. The failure of the talk with Bharti Airtel had been the topic of discussion after the Indian telco clinched a deal with Zain Africa. There is speculation that the MTN board will review its India strategy at the meeting due to objections from the Algerian government.
A deal with Reliance if it followed the previous structure put forward by Anil Ambani would give MTN a 51 per cent stake in Reliance Communications in return for a 25 per cent stake in the South African group. However, as of now, the prospect of a return to India might appear to be far-fetched.
African telco MTN’s CEO to depart by March 11
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: CEO Phuthuma Nhleko of MTN Group will not review his long-term contract of employment, which ends on June 30. He will continue in his current role up to March 2011.
Certain key objectives will be focused by Nhleko in the remaining part of his service including facilitation of a seamless transition once his successor has been appointed.
According to Nhleko, it was the right time to secure the next generation of leadership for the group and for him to start thinking about the next phase of his career.
Surprise MTN move to boost Nigerian stake
MTN is spending $348,9m to bump up its shareholding in MTN Nigeria by buying out some of the minority investors.
It will pay $287,8m in cash and issue 6-million shares in the parent company to take an extra 6,98% in the Nigerian subsidiary, giving it an 81,87% share.
The move is the opposite of what was expected as MTN has spent two years talking about reducing its 75% stake in Nigeria to bring in more local partners.
That has been cited as essential in a country where local partners can help to quell occasional protests from consumers and the government that the cost of calls are too high and that little of the money being generated has any benefit for local participants.
In 2004, MTN said that it might list its Nigerian subsidiary to introduce a broader range of Nigerian investors as its backers.
The company said that the potential listing would raise more cash to expand its network coverage and would also counter criticisms that it was a foreigner extracting money from the local economy.
A listing was not the only possible route for increasing local ownership, MTN had said, and various other options were being explored to broaden the local shareholding.
Yesterday CEO Phuthuma Nhleko said buying out some of the minority shareholders would let them capitalise on part of their investment. He also implied that the move would not be permanent, and that the repurchased shares might be sold on to new investors later.
The acquisition is part of a process that will facilitate a broader spectrum of Nigerians to participate in the performance of MTN Nigeria,??? he said.
MTN was still committed to bringing in a broader spectrum of Nigerians, and the acquisition should ultimately be part of that process, he said.
MTN Nigeria launched in 2001 and has become the country’s leading operator with 9,6-million subscribers, and a network that covers 73% of the population. It generated a revenue of $1bn for the six months to June, and has almost as many subscribers as MTN has on its home turf of SA.
Minority shareholders selling shares in the business are Celtelecom Investments, Celtel Funded Shares, Universal Communications, SASPV, N-Cell, Hermitage Overseas Corporation, Mobile Communications Holding and Mobile Communications Invest. They will sell 28-million shares for $12,424 each.
MTN will fund the cash portion of the payment partly from existing available cash and partly by drawing on banking facilities. About $15m of the cash settlement will be used to off-set some loan accounts that the minority shareholders have with MTN, reducing the cash payment to $272,6m.
Deutsche Bank was appointed to independently assess the deal, and has declared it fair and reasonable to existing MTN shareholders.
MTN’s shares lost 30c to trade at R61,50 after the announcement, then recovered somewhat to trade at R61,75.
Source- http://news.africast.com
