Vodafone Ireland customer base dips by 5% despite iPhone sales boost

VODAFONE has seen its Irish customer base dip 5% to 2.14 million in the year to the end of March but has managed to sell 40,000 iPhones in just two weeks.

The mobile operator also said Irish people are the biggest texters in Europe, sending more than double the European average.

In the three months to the end of March, Vodafone’s Irish customers used 22% more texts and 1.5% more voice minutes than in the previous year’s quarter, bringing the total texts sent in the year to 4.83 billion and voice minutes to 6.42bn.

Vodafone Ireland customers used on average 257 voice minutes each month and 200 text messages against a European average of 152 voice minutes and 89 text messages.

Vodafone launched the iPhone earlier this year, going head to head in a battle for customers with O2.

Vodafone director Gerry Fahy said: “We stepped up competition in the smart phone market with the successful launch of iPhone on Ireland’s number one network. In the two weeks post launch, we had over 40,000 iPhones on the network.”

In the first quarter of the year, Vodafone’s average blended monthly revenue per user fell by 7.7% to €36.10 from €39.10.

Mr Fahy said: “In the last 12 months, value has become more important than ever. In response, Vodafone has delivered overall price reductions of approximately 21% to our customers compared with a year ago.”

Last week, O2 also said its Irish customer base fell slightly to 1.706m in the year to the end of March.

On a group level, Vodafone, which is the world’s largest mobile-phone company, said it will increase dividend payments after a 1.7% rise in full-year operating profit on job cuts and higher emerging markets sales. The company targets an annual dividend per share growth of no less than 7% for the next three financial years.

In the 12 months ended March, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation rose to £14.7bn (€17.1bn) from £14.5bn.

“Improved revenues, better cash flow and higher dividends are the key positives,” Mandeep Singh, an analyst at Berenberg Bank in London, said.

Vodafone’s full-year sales rose 8.4%, to £44.5bn. However, on an organic basis, excluding currency swings and acquisitions, sales fell 2.3%.