Growth in mobile business places fixed-line giant at number 3 in SA

JOHANNESBURG – Partially state-owned Telkom said on Tuesday that growth in its mobile business during the six months ended September had placed it solidly as the country’s third-largest mobile operator on service revenue.

Telkom reported a 19 percent jump in mobile customers during lockdown to 13.7 million during the period with the mobile business delivering R8.28 billion in service revenue, marking a 47.8 percent growth compared to a year earlier.

The group said that its blended average revenue per user increased 36.7 percent to a historic high of R113, mainly due to unprecedented Covid-19 data demand.

Telkom said that its mobile business’ earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation had doubled through a 142 percent leap to R2.9 billion.

Chief executive Sipho Maseko said that the 10-year-old mobile business which on Monday announced it had partnered with the SABC to launch a new streaming channel had made substantial progress.