Revenue at BT Ireland increases 2pc to stg£661.6m

8 May 2014

BT Ireland, the subdivision of the BT Group, has posted an increase in total revenues of 2pc to stg£661.6m as of the end of the financial year on 31 March.

The telecommunications company has attributed much of the small percentage increase to a number of new contract wins within the financial year, in particular from global multinational corporations and large Irish exporting organisations, including Pioneer Investments and the Ardagh Group.

BT Ireland’s wholesale business also grew, despite continued industry challenges with intensified competition, price erosion and market consolidation.

Growth in this division has been underpinned by a number of new and renewed contract agreements, as well as Sky Ireland’s successful entry into the voice and broadband market. 

The two companies have been battling it out this year over the rights to the Barclay’s Premier League in England, with BT spending stg£897m for the rights to broadcast a number of the season’s matches.

In Ireland, BT’s wholesale agreement with Setanta Sports, the exclusive distributor of BT Sport in the Republic of Ireland, further contributed to this growth on the island.

The company has also begun establishing high-speed broadband across the country, including the deployment of the first commercial 100GB core network in Ireland.

Colm O’Neill, chief executive of BT Ireland, said the company’s full-year results reflect its continued growth in the Irish market as it added new customers, including the global multinational corporations and indigenous exporters.

“We successfully delivered several large projects, while in Northern Ireland, the rollout of our world-class fibre network has supported revenue growth as consumer demand for fibre broadband increases,” O’Neill said.

Across the Irish Sea, the financial report for the British market has also been released, indicating a similar pattern of growth. Revenue is up 1pc on the previous financial year, with an adjusted revenue of stg£18,287m, while operating costs decreased by stg£25m to stg£12,171m.

Colm Gorey was a senior journalist with Silicon Republic

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