Panafon Hellenic Telecom Co S.A.
6 April 2001
PRESS RELEASE
6 April 2001
Panafon-Vodafone total customer base reaches 2,340,020 for the year ended 31st
March 2001
+ 32% compared to previous year
PANAFON HELLENIC TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY SA ('Panafon'), the leading
provider of mobile telecommunications in Greece, announces its total
registered customer base reached 2,340,020 customers during the fiscal year
ending March 2001, a 32% increase compared to the corresponding period ending
31 March 2000.
During the year, Panafon's net additions totaled 567,146. Total churn was
22.7%, a decrease of 6 percentage points compared to the previous comparative
year, reflecting the increasing loyalty of Panafon customers.
At the end of the period, pre-pay customers totaled 1,598,709 and represented
68.3% of the total customer base. These numbers are in line with similar
trends in other European markets.
The results where achieved in an environment of intense competition, zero
subsidies for the pre-pay market and an elimination of subsidies for contract
customers, confirming the success of Panafon's profitable growth strategy and
reinforcing Panafon's position as the leading cellular operator in Greece.
During the quarter ending 31 March 2001, Panafon-Vodafone made a series of
important strategic moves to enrich its product and service offering to its
customer base:
* Panafon was the first Greek cellular operator and one of the first
companies in the Vodafone Group to announce the commercial launch of GPRS
technology based services to both retail and corporate customers. GPRS
technology based services can reach speeds of 36 Kbps for the time being,
potentially increasing to more than 100 Kbps, compared to the 9.6 Kbps
available today.
* Just after the end of the quarter on 4 April 2001, Panafon's
shareholders at an Extraordinary General Meeting approved the merger of
Panafon S.A., Panafon Emporiki S.A and Unifon S.A. under a corporate scheme
whereby Panafon will acquire the whole of the issued share capital of Unifon
that it does not already own. This will allow Panafon to restructure its
commercial distribution network and create an independent retail chain of
Panafon shops by merging Service Providers and creating a fully owned
Panafon-Vodafone retail chain.
* Panafon announced its participation for a joint venture with
Vizzavi Europe for the development and operation of the 'Vizzavi' multi-access
portal in Greece. The new company 'Vizzavi Hellas ' will focus its activities
in the development of fixed and mobile internet and e-commerce.
* Panafon, bidding in partnership with Vodafone Group via the joint
venture Vodafone International Holdings BV, was the highest bidder at USD38
million for the second GSM license in Albania in an international tender that
took place early this year. This was a further step in Panafon's strategy of
expanding its international presence in the Balkans, a mobile
telecommunications market that offers great growth potential.
* Panafon agreed to acquire a 51% equity stake in the Greek Company
Ideal Telecom. The agreement with Ideal Telecom will contribute significantly
to the deployment of Panafon's Data Communications strategy
* Panafon was granted a fixed wireless licence in the 25GHz band . The
license allows Panafon to offer integrated telecommunications services to its
corporate customers, through its 'One Stop Shop' solutions whilst utilising
the advantages of the liberated Greek telecommunications market.
For Further Information Contact:
Dimitris Tsorbatzoglou
Panafon Head of Investor Relations Tel: +301 6160019
[email protected], website www.panafon.gr/en/ir
Lulu Bridges or Stuart Carson,
Tavistock Communications, Tel: +(44) 20 7600 2288
Nicolas Bornozis ,
Capital Link, Tel: + (212) 661 7566
Notes to Editors:
1. Panafon's shares are quoted on the Athens Stock Exchange and its
GDSs are quoted on the London Stock Exchange. The shares and GDS's began
trading on Monday 7 December 1998 in ASE and LSE respectively.
2. Panafon has 512,500,000 shares in issue (prior to completion of the
merger).
3. Panafon is a shareholder in:
Panafon Emporiki (previously Panavox) 100.00 per cent
Panafon Services 100.00 per cent
Panafon Multimedia 100.00 per cent
Next Net 26.11 per cent
Unifon 19.56 per cent
(100% merger with Panafon subject to completion)
Mobitel 25.01 per cent
Ideal Telecom 51.00 per cent
4. Panafon was awarded a license to operate a GSM network in Greece for
a period of 20 years in August 1992. The network commenced operations on 1
July 1993.
5. Panafon's shareholding structure is as follows:
Vodafone Group Plc 55 per cent
France Telecom 3 per cent
Intracom Group 10 per cent
Free float 32 per cent
PANAFON listings:
Shares: Athens SE, Reuters PANr.AT. Bloomberg PANF GA. Nominal value GRD 100.
ISIN GRS 307 333 005. SEDOL 556 0349.
GDRs: LSE . Reuters PANq.L. Bloomberg PFH GR, PFHD LI. ISIN US 6981 132 060.
SEDOL 556 0361.
Rule 144A: Bloomberg Nasdaq 2250Q US. ISIN US 6981 131 070. SEDOL 230 2629
Indices: Greece ASE composite (ASE): 6.539%, Greece ASE industrial (ASEIND):
16.254%, FTSE/ASE 20: 2.827%, Bloomberg Europe (BE500): 0.059%, BE500 TELECOM
(BETELES): 0.459, DJ EUROPE STOXX (SXXP): 0.025%, DJ EUROPE ST TEL (SXKP):
0.240, FTSE EUROTOP 300 (E300): 0.016%, FTSE E300 TELECO (E3TELE): 0.135%, BBG
EUROPE TECHN (BETECH): 0.387.
