|
12 Dec 2003
VODACOM has reported a near 20% rise in income for the
first six months of 2003 .
Revenue growth was also bolstered by exceptionally low contract churn.
Vodacom reported a 38.3% increase in gross customer connections to 2.2
million –– the highest ever –– compared to the same period last year.
As a result, Vodacom South Africa’s customer base grew by a marked 19.5%
to 8.5 million of which nearly 1.3 million are contract customers and the
remaining bulk are prepaid customers.
Vodacom estimates that the local cellular market could grow beyond 19
million customers. The company controls 55% of the total number of South
African mobile customers currently estimated at 15.6 million.
Vodacom Group’s net profit after tax and minorities increased 49.7% to
US$394 million. Group operating margin rose from 19.5% to 21.7% despite
increasing interconnect costs, changes in traffic mix and a more
competitive operating environment across the operations in South Africa,
Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Lesotho.
|
|