What Türk Telekom lost on the screens, it gained on the ARPU
Telco Türk Telekom’s first quarterly figures suggest it might not be growing its TV subscriber numbers, but it has learned how to please the existing consumers. is that a more lasting foundation for growth? The verdict from Broadband TV News was ‘mixed fortunes’, as the telco revealed it ended its first quarter with fewer TV subscribers than this time last year. It is currently attending to 2.9 million TV subscribers, which is 5.1% down on the same period in 2021. But could the rise in average revenue per unit (ARPU) be evidence that the telco is learning how to please its core customers?
Covid conditions
Is this a like for like comparison, when the Covid plague, Russian war and other apocalyptic conditions keep changing and affecting the way mobile subscribers consume news and entertainment? The TV subscriber numbers have ‘barely changed on three months earlier’ said Broadband TV’s analyst.
The bird in hand
The good news for Türk Telekom is it has generated impressive momentum in its fibre optics, with its customer numbers up 40.7% to 10.3 million when compared to the same quarter in 2021. Türk Telekom’s revenues in Q1 were up 24.8%, at €606 million (TL9,471 million). Its ‘earnings before’ (EBITDA) were up by 8.2% to €263 million (TL4,115 million).
Ayağını yorganına göre uzat
The number of Tivibu Home (IPTV and DTH) subscribers as of the end of Q1 stood at 1.5 million, down 2.6% on a year earlier. Granted that net income ‘plunged’ by 58.6%, but could the profitability of that €36 million (TL561 million) be the bird in hand that’s worth two in the bush? As the Turkish say: Ayağını yorganına göre uzat, meaning: don’t stretch your arm longer than your sleeve will reach.