BT Q3: Fibre, 5G progress
February 4, 2021
In reporting its results for the nine months to December 31st 2020, multiplay telco BT has claimed progress in its fibre and 5G deployment.
Its digital infrastructure subsidiary Openreach’s FTTP network now reaches 4.1 million premises, built at an average run rate of 42k premises passed per week in the quarter, and remains on track to achieve 4.5 million by March 2021.
Mobile unit EE’s 5G is now in 125 locations, with the 5G-ready customer base now over 2.1 million.
Revenue was £16.058 billion, down 7 per cent primarily as a result of the impact of Covid-19 on Consumer and its enterprise units, ongoing legacy product declines and divestments of domestic businesses in Spain, Latin America and France.
“These results reflect real progress on four fronts,” stated Philip Jansen, Chief Executive. “Firstly, we are forging ahead with the fibre and 5G networks so vital for the UK’s economic recovery. Secondly, we are building a better BT, with radical changes to drive digital innovation and bring seamless connectivity with breakthrough products such as Halo 3. Thirdly, even as daytime demand on our UK network has doubled, thanks to the quiet dedication and exceptional hard work of the BT team worldwide, our customer satisfaction is at a record high. Finally, I am beyond proud of my colleagues and the way BT has stood by the country in its time of need, with even more support for the NHS, small businesses and lockdown learners in recent weeks. Taken together, our results show that we’re on track for this year’s outlook and still confident in our expectation of at least £7.9 billion EBITDA for 2022/23.”
“Our ambition is to build full fibre broadband to 20 million premises by the latter half of this decade. To get there we need Ofcom to come good on creating a climate that encourages investment and the Government to show some urgency in removing barriers so that we can stop talking and turbo-charge the move to next generation connectivity,” added Jansen.