Thorntons looks to add mobile services to portfolio
Fixed-line holds talks about expanding its B2B offering to include mobile services
Unified Comms
November 22, 2012
Service provider provides trading update ahead of full year results, reporting a 13 per cent increase in mobile subscriptions
Alternative Networks expects to report a 13 per cent increase in customer subscriber numbers in its results for the financial year ending September 30, when they are officially released in December.
The London-based firm says its mobile customer base, which includes O2 and Vodafone connections, has gone from 67,000 to 77,000 during the 12-month period.
Alternative said the increase represented an acceleration of growth in the second half of the 12-month period that was attributable to lower churn and significant customer wins towards the end of the year.
The company said the results with also show year-on-year revenue growth despite continued pressures from EU regulation lowering data usage revenues and the economic climate remaining depressed.
Gross profits increased by around six per cent in the first 11 months of the financial year, with improved margins, and the momentum in overall growth in profitability from mobile services has remained strong.
Alternative said its performance in fixed-line network services had been stable and broadly in line with expectation and claimed the transition to SIP, resulting in reduced line rentals, and the impact of lower mobile termination rates were each affecting opportunities for growth.
Revenues for its ‘Advance Solutions’ division, which included billing and fixed line installation services are expected to show a five per cent year-on-year decline to around £36 million.
The firm blamed economic uncertainty and slower new business investment decision-making for the decline.
It added a quarter of mobile hardware is now ordered on its website and is automatically provisioned, and on average 1,500 transactions a month are now self-serviced by customers.