Virgin Media beats expectations
Virgin Media has beaten analyst expectations and increased revenue by 1.3% to £953m for the three months to 30 September, driven by existing customers’ demand for additional services.
The company says performance was boosted by its strategy to focus on “high-value customers” that buy more services and stay with the brand for longer, keeping churn rates low.
The average spend per user rose 5% to £44.24 during the period, which the company says demonstrates higher demand from existing customers.
It says 59% of customers now opt for its “triple-play” services, including broadband, TV and home phone services, while more than 10% opt for “quad-play” and take up its mobile phone service as well.
Demand for high-speed broadband has increased 157% year-on-year, 72% of Virgin’s customer base.
The broadband provider added 200,000 additional customers during the quarter, adding 39,000 new broadband customers, 37,000 new TV customers, and 88,000 new mobile customers.
The company opened 20 high-street stores during the quarter and plans to triple the number of retail outlets it operates.
It is expanding its high-speed fibre-optic broadband network and trialling “ultra-fast” broadband in rural areas in Cornwall and Hampshire.
