COSMOTE Romania achieves sustainable growth in Q3 2012

• EBITDA up by 16.3% versus Q3 2011
• 9M 2012 ARPU up 1.5% y-o-y
• 3G customers increase by 12% y-o-y
• 32% growth in business customer base y-o-y
• Leader in portability 

COSMOTE Romania announces key performance indicators for the third quarter of 2012 fiscal year, ended September 30, 2012, as reported by OTE Group.

In Q3 2012, despite intense competition, COSMOTE Romania continued to strengthen its market position and financial performance in all main indicators. Moreover, COSMOTE maintained a sustained growth of 32% y-o-y in its business customer base, as a result of addressing the corporate segment as a priority.

Due to the persistent expansion of the business segment, as well as the very good performance on the data services area, total revenues in Q3 2012 reached 118 million Euro. EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) rose to 34.3 million Euro, up by 16.3% compared to Q3 2011 (+18% versus Q2 2012). EBITDA margin reached 29.1% in Q3 2012, up by 460 basis points compared to Q3 2011.

COSMOTE's total customer base in Romania, including Zapp, was 6.4 million at the end of September 2012, of which 24.1% was postpaid. 

Blended ARPU (Average Revenue Per User),  increased by 1.5% in 9M 2012 compared to 9M 2011, due to the launch of competitive, customer-centric propositions.

"This third quarter's results were in line with our objectives. We registered significant growth in most indicators, despite economic and regulatory adversities, tight competition and solid investment requirements. The period was marked by important milestones such as the successful spectrum auction, the 43.2 Mbps speed launch, and the network coverage expansion to the Bucharest subway. Our good performance is also mirrored in the portability results where, for the past four years, we remain the first choice of Romanians. Looking ahead, we will further consolidate our market position with key investments and with the development of products, services and customized offers that address customers' true needs.” said Konstantinos Apostolou, COSMOTE Romania's Chief Financial Officer. 

At end September, COSMOTE Romania was offering mobile broadband download speeds of up to 43.2 Mbps in 74 main cities within the country, representing more than 41% of the population. Moreover, customers could enjoy speeds of up to 21.6 Mbps in HSPA+ technology in 147 cities across the country. Overall, 3G services cover more than 68% of the Romanian population.

COSMOTE Romania is constantly investing in optimizing its national sales distribution channels, which included, at the end of the third quarter, approximately 560 points of sale across the country. 

In Q3 2012, mobile operations of the OTE Group provided telecommunications services to approximately 20.4 million customers in SE Europe.

Press release