Panafon Hellenic Telecom Co S.A.
4 October 2000
STRONG GROWTH FROM PANAFON
IN QUARTER ENDING SEPTEMBER, 2000
Panafon Hellenic Telecommunications Company S.A. ('Panafon'), the
leading provider of mobile telecommunications in Greece,
announces strong growth in its total customer base which reached
2,060,000 as at 30th September 2000, a 38.4% increase compared to
the end of September 1999.
Net customer additions for this quarter totalled 158,000, a 22.5%
increase over the previous quarter. Of these net additions,
110,000 were pre-pay customers, who now represent 65% of
Panafon's total customer base. The growth in contract customers
(48,000 net additions for the quarter) is significantly ahead of
the previous quarter and has been facilitated by the introduction
of new tariffs in June and despite Panafon's continuing policy of
controlling subsidies. Churn levels have been significantly
reduced when compared to the previous quarter.
Panafon, continuing the deployment of its strategy, has
introduced additional value added services. Panafon with its ISP,
Panafonet and its portal www.pan.gr, is well positioned to
exploit the full range of opportunities that will arise from the
internet mobile convergence, with its 'One-Stop-Shop' solution
offered to both corporate and retail customers. Panafon's
portal, www.pan.gr, is the only Greek Internet portal which
offers personalised services to all WAP users through 'myPAN' as
well as the first search facility for WAP cellular users in
Greece.
During this quarter, Panafon has also launched its MVPN (Mobile
Virtual Private Network) services to its corporate customers.
The Boards of Panafon Emporiki S.A. and Unifon S.A. have
previously announced their intention to merge, subject to
shareholder approval. Under the proposed merger, Unifon will
acquire the whole of the issued share capital of Panafon
Emporiki, whereby the merged company will become Panafon's
largest mobile communications Service Provider, as well as
offering a full range of Panafon's internet products and
services.
Panafon Services, Panafon's new wholly owned subsidiary, has
entered into a co-operation agreement with BYTE, Greece's leading
provider of integrated IT and networking solutions, to provide a
full range of services for Data Warehousing and Data Mining to
the Greek market.
Panafon will remain focused on expanding its customer base and
the overall profitable growth of its operations in what remains a
highly competitive market.
George Stefanopoulos
Panafon Group Investor Relations Executive, Tel: +301 6160406,
Maria Kaini,
Panafon Investor Relations Analyst, Tel: +301 6160692,
[email protected], website www.panafon.gr
Lulu Bridges / 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
began trading on Monday 7 December 1998.
2. Panafon has 512, 500,000 shares in issue.
3. Panafon is a shareholder in:
Panafon Emporiki (previously Panavox) 100.00 per cent
Panafon Services 100.00 per cent
Radio Korassidis Telecom 26.11 per cent
Unifon 19.01 per cent
Mobitel 25.01 per cent
Ideal Telecom 51.00 per cent(following
completion of all legal procedures)
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 S.A. 10 per cent
Free float 32 per cent