J58 Telecommunications Services

Mobile and corporate sales to help TPG beat margin squeeze

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 18 : 8-Dec-16

TPG Telecom executive chairman David Teoh told shareholders at the company’s AGM on 7 December 2016 that the long-term prospects for the group are very good. TPG is in the process of entering the mobile telephony market in Singapore. Teoh spoke about the benefits of a transition from the digital subscriber line service to the fibre to the building internet broadband connection in Australia, as the latter is more profitable.

CORPORATES
TPG TELECOM LIMITED – ASX TPM, NBN CO LIMITED, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD

Teoh focused on TPG future despite hurdles

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13/18 : 21-Sep-16

TPG Telecom has posted a 2015-16 net profit of $A384.6m, which is 71.6 per cent higher than previously. TPG anticipates that its underlying EBITDA for 2016-17 will be $A820m to $A830m, and capital expenditure will be between $A370m and $A420m. CFO Craig Levy has warned that the price ISPs pay for wholesale services from NBN Co are too high and will have to fall as more customers migrate to the national broadband network. TPG shares closed 21.4 per cent lower at $A9.28 on 20 September 2016.

CORPORATES
TPG TELECOM LIMITED – ASX TPM, NBN CO LIMITED, IINET LIMITED, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, OPHIR ASSET MANAGEMENT PTY LTD

Shareholders divided on Telstra’s $1.8b

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 17 : 19-Apr-16

Telstra will retain a 6.5 per cent stake in China’s Autohome following a deal to sell 47.7 per cent of its stake to Ping An Insurance Group for $US1.6bn ($A2.1bn). Telstra CEO Andy Penn says the telco will adopt a "balanced approach" to using the proceeds of the sale, which may include a capital management initiative. Bradley King of Armytage says his preference would be a special dividend rather than an on-market share buyback. He adds that the telco may seek other investment opportunities in Asia.

CORPORATES
TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, AUTOHOME INCORPORATED, PING AN INSURANCE COMPANY OF CHINA LIMITED, ARMYTAGE PRIVATE LIMITED, INVESTORS MUTUAL LIMITED, TRIBECA INVESTMENT PARTNERS PTY LTD, BEULAH CAPITAL PTY LTD, SAN MIGUEL CORPORATION

Optus to cut hundreds of jobs in pursuit of ‘sustainable growth’

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Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 5-Apr-16

Optus will reduce its workforce by up to 480 positions within its consumer and enterprise divisions. The telco stated on 4 April 2016 that the number of redundancies had not yet been determined, as some workers will be relocated to other divisions. Optus said costs must be reduced to ensure "sustainable growth".

CORPORATES
SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, VODAFONE HUTCHISON AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE, SINGAPORE TELECOMMUNICATIONS LIMITED

Penn sticks to $1.3b Asia growth plan

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Original article by David Ramli
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 10 : 15-Mar-16

Shares in Telstra closed 2.33 per cent higher at $A5.28 on 14 March 2016, after the telco advised that negotiations for a mobile network joint venture in the Philippines have been terminated. Telstra had been prepared to invest about $US1bn ($A1.3bn) in the venture with San Miguel, and CEO Andy Penn says the telco is still interested in making an investment of a similar size in Asia. However, institutional investors says Telstra should carefully consider risk factors in any future investments in the region.

CORPORATES
TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, SAN MIGUEL CORPORATION, AUSTRALIAN FOUNDATION INVESTMENT COMPANY LIMITED – ASX AFI, NIKKO ASSET MANAGEMENT GROUP, GLOBE TELECOM INCORPORATED, PHILIPPINE LONG DISTANCE TELEPHONE COMPANY, QATAR TELECOM

Optus could say Yes to name change

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Original article by David Ramli, John Stensholt
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 & 20 : 8-Mar-16

Australian telco Optus has used market research and focus groups to determine whether consumers would embrace a move to rebrand itself under the "Yes" banner. Optus has been actively securing trademarks using the Yes theme, although the cost of rebranding is seen as one of the problems associated with adopting its long-running tagline as its corporate name. Meanwhile, Optus is planning a major marketing drive ahead of launching its exclusive English Premier League coverage.

CORPORATES
SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, TPG TELECOM LIMITED – ASX TPM, VODAFONE HUTCHISON AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FETCHTV PTY LTD, CRICKET AUSTRALIA, SINGAPORE TELECOMMUNICATIONS LIMITED, FOXTEL MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, FOX SPORTS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Engineer ‘turned off’ Telstra net

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Original article by David Ramli
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 11 : 10-Feb-16

Telstra will offer its mobile customers free data on 14 February 2016 to compensate for an outage which took its mobile networks offline for about three hours. The telco will undertake an investigation into the outage, which occurred when a Telstra engineer accidentally switched off a core node without complying with the appropriate procedures. COO Kate McKenzie has given assurances that a similar incident will not occur again. The outage also affected emergency services and companies that use Eftpos terminals.

CORPORATES
TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, CABCHARGE AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX CAB, WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FIRE AND EMERGENCY SERVICES, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, POLICE FEDERATION OF AUSTRALIA

Amaysim shares surge on $70m Vaya takeover

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Original article by Ruth Liew
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 5-Jan-16

Amaysim currently boasts 718,000 mobile telephone subscribers, and the acquisition of online-only telco Vaya will increase its customer base by around 140,000. CEO Julian Ogrin says the $A70m deal will assist the growth strategy of Amaysim, which is aiming for one million customers by 2019. Ogrin anticipates further consolidation in the mobile phone market in 2016. Amaysim shares closed 20 per cent higher at $A2.75 on 4 January.

CORPORATES
AMAYSIM AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX AYS, VAYA PTY LTD, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, TPG TELECOM LIMITED – ASX TPM, IINET LIMITED, VOCUS COMMUNICATIONS LIMITED – ASX VOC, M2 GROUP LIMITED – ASX MTU, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, VODAFONE AUSTRALIA LIMITED

New Telstra CEO’s threat over prices

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Original article by David Ramli
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 15 : 14-Oct-15

Telstra CEO Andy Penn says earnings could be reduced by up to $A80m in fiscal 2016 due to an Australian Competition & Consumer Commission ruling that its wholesale prices should be cut by 9.4 per cent. Penn has also warned that the telco may be forced to reduce its investment in telecommunications infrastructure as a result of the decision. Meanwhile, more than 11 per cent of votes cast at Telstra’s AGM rejected the remuneration report, compared with less than two per cent in 2014.

CORPORATES
TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, AUSTRALIAN COMPANIES AND SECURITIES COMMISSION, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, VODAFONE HUTCHISON AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, TPG TELECOM LIMITED – ASX TPM, OVUM RESEARCH, FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FINANCE

Amaysim pushes for 1m subscribers

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Original article by David Ramli
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 28 : 5-Oct-15

Australian-listed mobile telephone reseller Amaysim currently boasts 718,000 mobile subscribers, but it aims to lift this to one million in the next four years. However, it had originally aimed to achieve this by 2015. The telco also believes that its customer support systems are robust enough to handle about two million subscribers. Amaysim is also expected to diversify its operations in coming years by expanding into electricity and gas retailing.

CORPORATES
AMAYSIM AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX AYS, SINGTEL OPTUS PTY LTD, SIMYO GMBH, TELSTRA CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX TLS, VODAFONE AUSTRALIA LIMITED, KOGAN MOBILE PTY LTD, ISPONE PTY LTD, TPG TELECOM LIMITED – ASX TPM, M2 GROUP LIMITED – ASX MTU, NETFLIX INCORPORATED, APPLE INCORPORATED