EBITDA was PLN 1.003 billion, down by 19.6 percent compared to Q4 2011, while the EBITDA margin dropped by 4.7 percent to 28.8 percent. Net free cash flow decreased by 44.4 percent to PLN 509 million, while net income fell 85.8 percent to PLN 51 million. Over the full year, cost reductions of PLN 101 million helped limit the EBITDA margin decline to 1.8 percentage points, to 34.2 percent from 36 percent in 2011. Net free cash flow amounted to PLN 1.54 billion in 2012, which was in line with the revised guidance but down sharply from PLN 2.40 billion in 2011.
At the end of Q4, the mobile service had 14.895 million customers, or 1.6 percent more than at the end of December 2011. Of the total, 6.911 million were postpaid mobile customers, down 0.9 percent from a year earlier; 7.984 million were prepaid mobile customers, up by 3.9 percent; and 985,000 were mobile broadband customers, up by 33 percent from 2011.
Orange continued to boost data usage by popularising smartphones. Their number has risen by 55 percent year-on-year, reaching almost 3.3 million, contributing to growth in revenues from messaging services and content, which rose by over 6 percent year-on-year.
The number of retail fixed lines dropped by 10.4 percent to 5.104 million, and the number of retail broadband accesses was almost unchanged at 2.345 milion, while the number of TV customers rose 11 percent year-on-year to 706,000. A total 59,000 'n' platform subscribers were added in 2012. Broadband ARPU in Q4 2012 was up by 5 percent year-on-year, thanks to 193,000 additional triple-play users.
The trends in the fixed voice customer base are improving, TP said. The decline in the number of retail fixed voice customers was limited to 91,000 in Q4 2012, compared to 182,000 in Q4 2011. Q4 ARPU from broadband and its bundles has grown by 5 percent year-on-year and is coupled by a positive tendency in the number of broadband customers.
Group revenue totalled PLN 14.147 billion for the full year 2012, down 4.1 percent mainly due to mobile termination cuts, both in July 2011 and July 2012. TP anticipates a steep decline in its revenue in 2013, driven by further MTR cuts, as well as the ongoing price war in the mobile market. TP said it will significantly accelerate its cost savings measures, striving to transform into a leaner and more agile organisation. TP does not exclude outsourcing or asset disposals as a means to increase efficiency.
Investments executed in the past allow TP to limit standard capital expenditures to below PLN 2 billion in 2013, with the view to bringing capital expenditure down to roughly 12-13 percent of revenues in the future. It plans to allocate capital to acquire spectrum.
TP said it's also absolutely committed to preserving the strength of its financial structure by keeping its net gearing below 40 percent and the net debt to EBITDA ratio below 1.5x. In this context, recognising the market volatility and potential new capital requirements, it decided to take a more cautious position with regards to shareholder remuneration. TP believes that this is a responsible decision that is to the long term benefit of the company and all its stakeholders, including shareholders. The company aims to pay a dividend of at least PLN 0.5 per share in mid-2013, down from PLN 1.50 last year.
