Telenor slows DTH decline

Telenor’s Fornebu HQ

The rate of decline of Telenor’s DTH TV base continued to slow in the second quarter. Telenor reported 902,000 customers for its Canal Digital DTH operation at the end of June, down 3,000 quarter-on-quarter and down from 915,000 at the same time last year.

DTH ARPU grew 1% year-on-year to NOK371 (€41.65).

Telenor Broadcast, of which Canal Digital is a part, turned in revenues of NOK1.518 billion for the quarter, down 2%. EBITDA was NOK480 million, up 2%. Capex rose dramatically in the quarter to NOK1.537 billion, compared with NOK77 billion for the same period the previous year, thanks to Telenor’s investment in its new Thor 7 satellite, which accounted for NOK1.4 billion.

Canal Digital turned in revenues of NOK1.121 billion, up from NOK1.109 billion. Telenor Satellite Broadcasting turned in revenues of NOK253 million, up from NOK239 million.

Telenor had 528,000 fixed-line TV customers in Norway at the end of June, up 2,000 on the previous quarter, delivering ARPU of NOK291, up from NOK285. Overall revenue from fixed broadband and TV was NOK1.342 billion for the quarter, up from NOK1.248 billion for the same period the previous year.

Fixed TV customer in Sweden numbered 490,000 at the end of June, down from 517,000 in the previous quarter. Fixed revenue dropped from NOK770 for the quarter to March to NOK765,000 in the second quarter.