Virgin Mobile USA Q1 net income up 301% May 13, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Financial, North America, USA, Virgin Mobile.Tags: Financial, North America, USA, Virgin Mobile
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Virgin Mobile USA has posted a net income of $19.1m for the first quarter ended March 31, 2009, an increase of 301%, compared to a net income of $4.7m for the same period in 2008. The company posted total operating revenue of $337.28m for the first quarter of 2009 as compared to $330.01m in the first quarter of 2008. Operating income for the first quarter of 2009 increased to $36.20m from $16.60m in the same quarter of 2008. Adjusted EBITDA for the first quarter ended March 31, 2009 increased to $49.54m from $28.70m in the comparable period of 2008. Adjusted EBITDA margin for the first quarter of 2009 was 15.6% compared to 9.3% in the first quarter of 2008.Dan Schulman, CEO of Virgin Mobile USA, said: “We are pleased with our first quarter results and the initial success of our new offers focused on high-quality customer additions. Gross customer additions on hybrid plans grew to 55% of the total in the first quarter. Because of our strong performance in the first quarter, we are increasing our guidance for adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow for 2009. Adjusted EBITDA excluding transition and restructuring expenses is expected to be $127 to $142m, and free cash flow is expected to be $45 to $55m for the full year 2009.”
Globecomm Systems 2Q profit falls 75 pct February 11, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Financial, Globecomm, Mobile, VoIP.Tags: Financial, Globecomm, Mobile, VoIP
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Satellite communications company Globecomm Systems Inc. reported a 75 percent decline in fiscal second quarter earnings Monday on falling sales in its infrastructure business. Globecomm said separately it has launched a global maritime broadband satellite service for cellular, VoIP, video teleconference, data and e-mail service. Globecomm is said it is pairing with the company Mach6, which provides applications including onboard computing, voice and video, mapping and others.
Globecomm posted a profit of $948,000, or 5 cents per share, for the three months ended Dec. 31 compared with $3.7 million, or 18 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter. Sales fell 26 percent to $40 million from $54.4 million, led by a 45 percent decline in the satellite infrastructure business, which the company attributed to the worldwide economic slowdown.
Malaysia’s Digi Reports Full-Year Revenues Up 10% February 9, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Asia, Digi, Financial, Malaysia.Tags: Asia, Digi, Financial, Malaysia
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Malaysian mobile operator, DiGi has reported an after-tax-profit of RM1.1 billion (US$304 million) on the back of a 10% growth in revenue to RM4.8 billion (US$1.3 billion) in 2008. The rise in revenue was driven by steady demand for mobile services and an increase in subscriber base to 7.1 million at the end of 2008. Average revenue per user (ARPU) maintained at RM59 (US$16.35).
Commenting on DiGi’s performance in 2008, chief executive officer Johan Dennelind said, We are pleased to have met our financial guidance despite intense competition and a more challenging macro-economic environment towards the second-half of 2008. Encouragingly, we are gaining positive momentum for our postpaid business as seen in the significant increase in subscriber base by 56%, surpassing the 1 million mark.
Year-on-year, DiGi’s earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose to RM2.2 billion (US$609 million). As expected, EBITDA margin decreased to 45.1% due to competitive price pressure, higher traffic and network operating costs as well as increased sales and marketing expenses.
New Palestinian mobile network receives funding February 9, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Financial, GSM, Palestine, Qtel, Wataniya.Tags: Financial, GSM, Palestine, Qtel, Wataniya
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International Finance Corp (IFC), the private-sector lending arm of the World Bank, is to invest USD 30 million in a new operator building a mobile network in Palestine’s West Bank. The operator, known as Wataniya Palestine, is a joint-venture between the Palestine Investment Fund (PIF) and Wataniya Telecom, which is majority-owned by Qatar’s Qtel. “The network being built by Wataniya Palestine will use the internationally popular GSM standard,” Allan Richardson, Wataniya’s chief executive, told Reuters. The operator received its GSM license, the second to be issued in Palestine, in September 2006. IFC said its investment was driven by the desire to provide jobs and help make mobile services more affordable and more widely available in the Palestinian territories.
VeriSign sells European mobile branch to Sinon February 9, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Europe, Financial, MMS, Sinon, VeriSign.Tags: Europe, Financial, MMS, Sinon, VeriSign
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Global internet infrastructure services provider VeriSign is selling its European mobile branch to Austrian investment group Sinon, with effect from 1 January. The new company, which specialises in mobile messaging, will be called Mobile Messaging Solutions. The sale follows VeriSign’s decision to withdraw from the mobile business sector and focus more on its online naming and security activities. MMS has named Otto Legerer as CEO. The management team comprises Peter Kraus as CFO and Harald Weinberger in the role of CTO. Kraus was previously VeriSign’s financial manager. Weinberger says that the company aims to expand its presence in Vienna and Central and Eastern Europe. Furthermore, ongoing technical development and innovation will be encouraged allowing the company to continue its ongoing expansion into new markets in Asia and Africa. MMS aims to provide mobile applications and SMS services with its international mobile messaging network made up of data centres. These centres will be responsible for the transmission of more than 240 million SMS messages each year on behalf of tier 1 clients including all Austrian mobile communications operators, media providers and large branded organisations. The company will also focus on SMEs to receive support for mobile marketing. MMS and VeriSign plan to continue a long-term partnership within the verticals of mobile security and mobile international services.
RIM tops VeriSign offer for Certicom February 6, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Certicom, Financial, Research In Motion, RIM, VeriSign.Tags: Certicom, Financial, Research In Motion, RIM, VeriSign
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Research In Motion has made a new bid to acquire the mobile security developer Certicom, topping an offer from VeriSign. Certicom went to court to block RIM’s initial bid, saying it was too low. RIM is now offering CAD 3 per share, beating an offer of CAD 2.10 per share from VeriSign. Certicom’s board said it considers RIM’s offer a “superior proposal”, as defined in its agreement with VeriSign. VeriSign now has five business days, until the end of 11 February, to change its offer. If Certicom goes ahead with the RIM deal, it will owe a CAD 4 million termination fee to VeriSign.
Alcatel-Lucent Writes Off $5 Billion in Assets February 5, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Alcatel-Lucent, Financial, LTE, WiMAX.Tags: Alcatel-Lucent, Financial, LTE, WiMAX
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Alcatel-Lucent has reported its eighth quarterly loss as it wrote down the value of its assets by over US$5 billion. The firm recorded a loss of €3.89 billion (US$5 billion), compared to a loss of €2.58 billion (US$3.35 billion) a year earlier. The company has now written down its assets by around €8 billion (US$10.3 billion) since Alcatel brought Lucent in 2006.For the full year, the company reported revenues of €16.984 billion (US$21.9 billion), down 4.5% year over year (down 1.1% at constant currency), and a net loss of €5.215 billion (US46.7 billion).
Alcatel-Lucent has started to implement its plan to introduce more focused R&D and streamline its product portfolio, starting with mature technologies and the refocusing of its WiMAX investment on the enhanced wireless DSL market opportunity, while at the same time significantly boosting investments in LTE.
Lebanon to lower mobile prices in April February 4, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Financial, Lebanon, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: Financial, Lebanon, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless
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The Lebanese government has reached an agreement to lower mobile calling rates in April. Telecommunications minister Jebran Bassil told a media briefing that the cuts will save the Lebanese USD 225 million annually, the Daily Star reports. But the minister did not expect a drastic fall in the revenues of the state-owned networks, as the price cuts are offset by an increase in subscribers thanks to planned capacity expansions. According to the new scheme, the monthly subscriptions for postpaid mobile cards will fall to USD 15 from the current USD 25 and the per-minute rate for postpaid users will drop to USD 0.11 from USD 0.13. The minister expects that more consumers will be encouraged to switch from prepaid to postpaid cards after the price cuts. More than 80 percent of the country’s mobile subscribers use prepaid cards. The price of a one-month prepaid card will drop to USD 25 from USD 45, while the cost of a one-minute call will fall to USD 0.36 from USD 0.50.
Motorola losses widen as Q4 phone sales tumble 51% February 4, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Financial, Motorola, USA.Tags: Financial, Motorola, USA
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Motorola reported a net loss of USD 3.6 billion for the fourth quarter as a continued slump in its mobile phone sales caused heavy writedowns and restructuring charges at the company. The net loss of USD 1.57 per share includes USD 1.56 in charges, most of which are non-cash writedowns of goodwill and investments. In the year-earlier period the company had a net profit of USD 100 million or USD 0.05 per share, Quarterly revenues fell to USD 7.14 billion from USD 9.65 billion, and the operating loss widened to USD 1.68 billion from USD 19 million. The mobile phone division saw quarterly sales fall 51 percent year-on-year to USD 2.35 billion, while the operating loss widened to USD 595 million from USD 388 million. Motorola shipped 19.2 million handsets in the quarter, down from 40.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2007. The Home and Networks Mobility division also saw a decline in sales, down 5 percent to USD 2.6 billion, but improved operating profit to USD 257 million from USD 192 million in the year-earlier period. Sales at Enterprise Mobility Solutions rose 4 percent year-on-year to USD 2.2 billion, while operating profit rose to USD 466 million from USD 451 million. Motorola reiterated a target for USD 1.5 billion in cost reductions this year. For the first quarter the company forecast a net loss of USD 0.10-0.12 per share, excluding any one-time charges. Motorola also announced a suspension in its quarterly dividend payments. The company reported positive cash flow in Q4 of USD 201 million, and finished the year with USD 7.4 billion in cash. Finally, the company said its CFO Paul Liska is leaving the company. Edward Fitzpatrick, senior vice president and corporate controller, has been named acting CFO while the company searches for a replacement.
Vodafone sales up 14%, raises outlook on forex boost February 4, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Financial, Mobile Network Operator, UK, Vodafone.Tags: Financial, Mobile Network Operator, UK, Vodafone
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Vodafone Group reported revenues for the three months to December of GBP 10.47 billion, up 14.3 percent from a year earlier on the back of positive currency effects and takeovers. On an organic basis, sales fell 1 percent year-on-year, as growth in Africa and Asia could not offset a decline in the mobile operator’s mature markets in Western Europe. Vodafone added 9.5 million new mobile customers in the period, led by its Indian operation gaining over 6.3 million and Vodacom in Africa adding over 1 million. The company finished 2008 with 289 million customers, proportionate for its ownership in subsidiaries. Due to the decline in pound sterling, Vodafone has increased its operating profit outlook for the full year by GBP 500 million, to GBP 11.5 billion, and raised the free cash flow forecast by GBP 300 million, to a range of GBP 5.5-6.0 billion. Revenues are now estimated at GBP 40.6-41.5 billion, up from the previous outlook of GBP 38.8-39.7 billion. Vodafone CEO Vittori Colao said in a statement that the underlying outlook remains the same, with results in the past quarter similar to the previous three months. He also reiterated a target for GBP 1 billion in cost savings by March 2011, of which half are expected by March 2010.
Warid Telecom Gets Funding for Network Expansion January 30, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Financial, Mobile Network Operator, Pakistan, Singtel, Warid Telecom.Tags: Financial, Mobile Network Operator, Pakistan, Singtel, Warid Telecom
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Pakistani mobile network operator, Warid Telecom says that it has had an injection of US$250 million in equity by its two joint shareholders, Singtel and the Abu Dhabi Group. The company said that the funds will be used to expand the network coverage.Tariq Gulzar – Warid’s Chief Financial Officer said, This equity injection of US$250 Million by the company’s shareholders, namely Abu Dhabi Group and SingTel, demonstrates the confidence reposed by our shareholders in the company’s ability to continue to provide highest level of quality services to our valued subscribers at very affordable prices. We are going to further enhance our technical and retail network across the country to exceed the expectations of our existing and potential subscribers.
Warid Pakistan is a joint venture between Abu Dhabi Group & SingTel Group. Abu Dhabi Group entered into a strategic alliance with Singapore Telecom. Subsequent to this transaction in July 2007, telecom giant SingTel acquired 30% percent equity stake in Warid Pakistan, for US$758 million.
Vodacom 9-month revenue up 13.7% January 28, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Africa, ARPU, Financial, Mobile, Network Operator, Vodacom.Tags: Africa, ARPU, Financial, Mobile, Network Operator, Vodacom
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African mobile operator Vodacom posted a 13.7 percent rise in nine-month revenue as it boosted subscriber numbers. Revenue for the nine months ended 31 December rose to ZAR 40.5 billion, while the number of mobile customers increased 14.3 percent year-on-year to 37.8 million. Its customer base increased 5.8 percent versus the previous quarter. Its South African subscriber base swelled 4.8 percent versus the previous quarter to 26.45 million, and it lost one percentage point of market share to 52 percent. ARPU in its home market rose 2.3 percent from the previous quarter to ZAR 135. The non-South African operations comprised 11.3 million customers, or 30 percent of the total. On a quarterly basis, non-South African customers rose 8.4 percent. Vodacom said expanding its African footprint beyond South Africa is one of the pillars of its growth strategy.
Earnings Preview: AT&T to report 4Q results January 28, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Apple, AT&T, BlackBerry, Financial, iPhone, USA.Tags: Apple, AT&T, BlackBerry, Financial, iPhone, USA
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AT&T Inc. reports its fourth-quarter results on Wednesday. The following is a summary of key developments and analyst opinion related to the period.As the largest telecommunications company in the country, AT&T has been something of a haven in a dismal economy. But its stock is down 24 percent from a year ago, compared with a 37 percent decline for the S&P 500.AT&T’s wireless unit has kept posting healthy growth, helped in particular by the July release of Apple’s second-generation iPhone. Analysts expect that growth to have slowed down in the fourth quarter, even though AT&T did launch another high-profile smart phone, the BlackBerry Bold, in November.Paradoxically, fewer iPhone sales help the company in the short term, because AT&T subsidizes each unit by hundreds of dollars, which it then recoups through service fees. AT&T is the exclusive U.S. carrier for the iPhone.
Apple sells 4.36 million iPhone 3Gs in quarter January 27, 2009
Posted by aikservices in 3G, Apple, Financial, iPhone, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: 3G, Apple, Financial, iPhone, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless
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Apple announced financial results for its fiscal 2009 first quarter ended 27 December 2008, posting record revenue of USD 10.17 billion and record net quarterly profit of USD 1.61 billion. This compares to USD 1.78 per diluted share. In accordance with the subscription accounting treatment required by GAAP, the Company recognizes revenue and cost of goods sold for iPhone and Apple TV over their economic lives. Adjusting GAAP sales and product costs to eliminate the impact of subscription accounting, the corresponding non-GAAP measures for the quarter are USD 11.8 billion of Adjusted Sales and USD 2.3 billion of Adjusted Net Income. Apple sold 2,524,000 Macintosh computers during the quarter, representing 9 percent unit growth over the year-ago quarter and at the same time, Apple sold a record 22,727,000 iPods during the quarter, representing 3 percent unit growth over the year-ago quarter. Quarterly iPhone units sold were 4,363,000, representing 88 percent unit growth over the year-ago quarter. In total, Apple sold 11.26 million iPhone 3Gs and 6.1 million first generation iPhones.
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