MTN's Growth Slows Down In First Quarter

MTN Group has recorded 170, 573,000 subscribers as of March 31, 2012.

This represents a 3.7 per cent increase for the quarter from 164, 501, 000 subscribers recorded as of December 31, the previous year.

The marginal achievement, according to the MTN Group, comes notwithstanding what it described as “continued high levels of competition in key markets”.

According to a report made available to the Graphic.com.gh, MTN South Africa contributed 13.3 per cent to Group subscribers and delivered a sound performance in a mature market.

“It increased its subscriber base 3.2 per cent for the quarter. The postpaid segment performed well, increasing its subscriber base by 4.4 per cent mainly due to attractive data propositions”, the report noted.

It said the prepaid segment increased its subscriber base by 2.9 per cent despite increased competition and attributed it to competitive promotions including the continued success of “MTN Zone through improved informal distribution channels”.

However, the report said “Blended Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) declined 7.9 per cent mainly due to a reduction in interconnect rates to 56 cents in March 2012 from 73 cents previously, while postpaid and prepaid ARPU decreased 6.7 per cent and 8.1 per cent respectively.

MTN Nigeria, on the other hand, contributed 25.1 per cent to Group subscribers and increased its subscriber base by 3.0 per cent for the quarter under review.

Net connections of 1,258,000 were negatively impacted by a nationwide strike in January and aggressive competition.

The report said slower net connections at the beginning of the year resulted in a marginal loss of MTN’s share of the market.

However, it noted that corrective measures enabled the operation to increase network capacity and improve net connections later in the quarter.

The report said, “No clarity has yet been provided on the deadline for SIM registration. The harmonising of MTN Nigeria’s database of registered subscribers with the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) database is in progress.

On the other hand, the report said “Local currency ARPU declined by 1.1 per cent for the quarter.

MTN Irancell contributed 21.6 per cent to Group subscribers.

On a proportional basis according to the report, reflecting MTN’s 49 per cent ownership, its contribution was 11.9 per cent.

It said it continued to deliver a solid performance growing its subscriber base by 6.2 per cent and increasing its share of the market for the quarter.

This was mainly due to attractive value propositions including 2-in-1 SIM packs and various seasonal promotions.

“At the end of March, MTN Irancell recorded 213 000 WiMax customers. Local currency ARPU increased 3.7 per cent due to improved network quality. The third mobile operator is expected to launch commercially in the second quarter of 2012,” the report said.

MTN Ghana contributed 6.1 per cent to Group subscribers, increasing its subscribers 2.3 per cent for the quarter and maintaining market share in a competitive environment.

This, the report, said was due to attractive promotions, as well as the implementation of a regional structure to better manage sales and marketing.

Local currency ARPU increased by 3.4 per cent mainly because of revised value propositions. The deadline for SIM registration was March 1, 2012 resulting in a disconnection of 21,237 subscribers, representing two per cent of the subscriber base.

MTN Syria contributed 3.3 per cent to Group subscribers.

The report said its performance continued to be hampered by civil unrest in the country, which resulted in a reduction of subscriber numbers of 23,000 and a decline in local currency ARPU of 8.5 per cent.

The rest of MTN’s operations, the report said, contributed 30.5 per cent to Group subscribers, representing an increase in users of 3.5 per cent.

The report said the Group continued to prioritise key initiatives to better manage the business as consumer trends evolve and competition intensified.

By Graphic.com.gh