Budiey
CELCOM RETAINS DOUBLE DIGIT GROWTH IN KEY AREAS
17th consecutive quarter of growth: Highest ever quarterly EBITDA – RM818 million and PATAMI – RM476 million
Celcom Axiata Berhad [formerly known as Celcom (Malaysia) Berhad] continued its momentum, recording an unprecedented 17 consecutive quarters of positive revenue growth in the second quarter of 2010 with the highest ever quarterly profit and EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortisation).
The leading telecommunications service provider in the country retained double digit growth on a year-on-year (YoY) basis in all key indicators with Revenue up 11% to RM1.7 billion; EBITDA increased by 20% to RM818 million, whilst PATAMI (Profit After Tax and Minority Interests) recorded an increment of 30% to RM476 million.
On a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis, Celcom continued to show positive performance with revenue up by 0.4%. Effective costs management and ongoing focus on operational efficiency saw EBITDA up by 6% with margins improving by 2.5 percentage points QoQ whilst PATAMI showed a robust increase of 8%.
Amidst stiff competition, Celcom’s mobile broadband maintained its position as the leading mobile broadband provider, with subscribers surpassing the 700,000 mark. The overall broadband revenue growth of 89% YoY, contributed to 9% of total revenue, up from 5% in the same quarter last year. As compared to the previous quarter, broadband revenue grew by 13%.
The year also saw strong growth in overall non-voice revenue, now contributing 32% to total revenue, from 27% a year ago. Celcom’s subscribers base continued to grow, reaching 10.6 million with growth in prepaid deriving primarily from Youth segment whilst postpaid from robust mobile broadband acquisition.
The Enterprise segment witnessed continued growth, contributing approximately 11% to total revenue. This segment retained its stronghold as the leading provider to large corporations, multinational corporations (MNCs) and also the government sector.
“The exceptional quarterly PATAMI and EBITDA growth is a testament of the excellent execution of segmented marketing strategy on top of ongoing cost management through implementation of smart spending measures. These achievements as well as that of 17 consecutive quarters of revenue growth would not be possible without the Celcom employees and the best management team, a pool of talented individuals who persevere and believe in the company’s transformation goals,” said Dato’ Sri Shazalli Ramly, Chief Executive Officer of Celcom.
Moving forward
To sustain its current momentum for the second half of the year, Celcom will continue strengthening its network infrastructure to meet consumers’ demand for better access and faster connectivity. The recent RM4.2 billion nominal value unrated Sukuk programme issued by Celcom’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Celcom Transmission (M) Sdn Bhd, marked the first step in establishing a network-centric entity which is part of an internal exercise to streamline and synergise business functions and operations. This move further complements the recent announcement of a network and infrastructure collaboration with DiGi.
“This newly established platform of a separate infrastructure service provider will be well-positioned to act as the infrastructure specialist, not only for the entire Axiata Group, but also the possibility of servicing other mobile operators in Malaysia. Reduction of duplications will generate significant savings, ultimately bringing about lower operational cost and improved quality of service. All these, at the end of the day, will bring benefits to not only the service providers but more importantly, to the general public,” commented Dato’ Sri Shazalli.
Focusing on maintaining its leadership in the broadband segment, we will intensify mobile data proposition through smart bundling to the market. Celcom will continue investing heavily in network infrastructure, especially with trend becoming more data-centric than voice-centric, expanding its coverage and capacity, and also to facilitate the ever increasing data demand.
Additionally, the deployment of the new prepaid billing platform is on track to address the limitations of current offering and capability. This new billing system will also be able to facilitate introduction of new products and also a capability that eventually will offer increased flexibility to the customers.
Celcom will also continue to refine its segmentation strategy and this is demonstrated through the recent marketing efforts such as the launch of the BlackBerry® Messenger Plan targeting the youth and also the introduction of the newly enhanced Celcom Blue, a prepaid brand targeting working adults aged 25 and above.
Awards and Achievements
Celcom was also acknowledged with numerous awards and accolades for its outstanding achievements in operational profits and strategic initiatives, and they are:
• Wireless Data Service Provider of the Year Award at the 2010 frost & Sullivan Asia Pacific ICT Awards
• Service Provider of the Year Award, Mobile Service Provider of the Year Award and Broadband Service Provider of the Year Award at the 2010 Frost & Sullivan Malaysia Telecoms Awards
• Best Mobile Carrier Award at the 13th Telecom Asia Awards 2010
• 2010 Top Ranking Performers in the Contact Centre Industry Awards (Asia Pacific region) at the Contact Center World Awards
• Gold Awards for Best Contact Centre, Best Helpdesk (Technical Team) and Best Contact Centre Professional (Workforce Planning) at the Contact Center World Awards
