AIS beats analysts' forecasts with Bt5-bn profit in Q1

It said the performance was due to revenue growth and declining costs.

A telecom analyst said many had expected AIS to record a first-quarter net profit of about Bt4.6 billion, and industry analysts might now revise upwards their forecasts for AIS's full-year net profit from the current prediction of Bt18 billion.

However, AIS president Wichian Mektrakarn said he could not tell whether AIS could maintain the momentum throughout the year. The high first-quarter profit came from the annual high season for phone use. The country's largest cellular operator made a consolidated net profit of Bt5.12 billion, up 28.61 per cent from Bt3.98 billion in the corresponding period last year.

Its service revenues, excluding interconnection revenue, rose 9.9 per cent to Bt 21.42 billion, from Bt19.49 billion in last year's first quarter. This was a result of strong revenue growth in prepaid services, non-voice traffic and international calls. The company's non-voice revenue grew by 26 per cent year on year to Bt2.67 billion.

Selling and administrative expenses fell by 17.3 per cent to Bt2.58 billion from Bt3.12 billion in the first quarter of 2007, due to lower marketing expenses, improving bad debt provisions and discontinued amortising of goodwill, following a change in accounting policy.

AIS's closest competitor, Total Access Communication (DTAC), recorded a net profit of Bt2.3 billion in the first quarter, growing 50.5 per cent year on year and 47.8 per cent quarter on quarter.

AIS, which currently has more than 25 million subscribers, is 42.68 per cent-owned by Shin Corp. Shin's satellite operator, Thaicom - formerly known as Shin Satellite - recorded consolidated revenue of Bt2.4 billion in the first quarter, an increase of 13.7 per cent over Bt2.11 billion in the corresponding period last year.

It reported yesterday a consolidated net profit of Bt281 million, an increase of Bt146 million or 108.1 per cent, over Bt135 million in the first quarter of last year.

Thaicom's flagship is the iPSTAR broadband satellite, the footprint of which covers the Asia-Pacific.

At the end of the first quarter, the company had sold a total of 125,024 terminals to receive iPSTAR's signals, and it expected that number to reach 200,000 by the end of 2008. It sold 20,957 iPSTAR terminals in the first quarter, an increase of 11,826 units or 129.5 per cent more than the 9,131 units sold in the first three months of 2007.

Thaicom's iPSTAR service revenue was Bt803 million, up 133.4 per cent over that from the first quarter of 2007.

Thaicom said it had adjusted its strategy by focusing more on the individual market in the region - with the exception of Thailand - after earlier focusing solely on the corporate market.

One strategy is lowering its service price to broaden the market. For example, it recently lowered its monthly fee in New Zealand to 49 New Zealand dollars (Bt1,210) from $89.