Announcing on Friday its quarterly results, Optus said the lift in operating revenues reflected strong equipment sales, and sustained growth across its mobile and fixed businesses.

Optus also reported a 9% increase in quarterly net profit on the back of its continuing network investments supporting a strategy to become a “mobile-led multimedia company with innovative data plans and compelling content”.

Key performance figures announced by Optus include:

•    Mobile service revenue rose 1% to A$1.24 billion. Incoming service revenue declined 5% due to lower inbound roaming revenues, while outgoing mobile service revenue rose 2%, underpinned by a 133,000 year-on-year increase in postpaid handset customers

•    12,000 new mobile customers added during the quarter, bringing the total number of mobile subscribers to 9.37 million. The number of 4G subscribers increased to 4.45 million, a 40% year-on-year increase. 4G Plus customers now account for 47% of Optus’ total mobile customer base

•    Prepaid handset customers returned to growth this quarter with net additions of 61,000 subscribers.


•    Postpaid handset customers declined by 26,000 this quarter, impacted by the deactivation of a wholesale customer. Excluding these deactivations, postpaid handset customers grew by 88,000.

Optus says in Mass Market Fixed, operating revenue grew 6%, due to growth in its NBN customer base and increased take up of Optus TV. The telco said the expanding national NBN footprint and competitive entertainment offers increased its NBN broadband customer base, and it now has 88,000 NBN customers, and a total of 1.04 million broadband customers.

He said Optus’ 4G Plus network is now available at 4,451 regional and metropolitan sites, and reaches 92% of Australians, as of 31 January 2016.

“In the coming quarter, Optus will continue to strengthen and extend the reach of its 4G Plus network as it increases deployment across its 700 MHz and 2600 MHz spectrum holdings.

“Following its recent acquisition of regional 1800 MHz spectrum, Optus now has more spectrum assets to expand its network and improve its 4G coverage for more Australians,” Lew concluded.

In Singapore on Friday, Optus’ parent company Singtel also released its results for the third quarter and the nine months to the end of last December, showing that quarterly net profits for the quarter had dropped.

Chua Sock Koong, Singtel Group CEO, said quarterly profits had slid by 2% to S$954 million, up 1% in currency terms.

Koong said mobile data growth, ICT services and digital marketing had driven company growth, with operating revenue at S$4.47 billion, up 6% in constant currency terms.

And, net profit for first 9 months was up 3% to S$2.93 billion despite currency headwinds.