Dialog first half profits soar on subscriber gains

Sri Lanka’s leading operator by subscribers, Dialog Telekom, reported a 77% rise in profits for the first six months of 2005 to LKR3.45 billion (USD34.2 million), as people flocked to sign up to its services. The operator says its performance was ‘fuelled by parallel growth in the key revenue drivers of subscriber base, network, increased in usage per user and expansion in its international business’. Dialog’s post-paid subscriber base climbed 51% in the first half of the year, while its pre-paid base increased by 68%. The operator’s revenues were also up to LKR8.14 billion from LKR5.04 billion a year earlier.