VIPnet sales, operating profits down

Telekom Austria’s Croatian mobile subsidiary VIPnet’s revenues in 2008 fell by 1.8% to EUR523.6 million (USD670.9 million), with EBITDA down 4.8% to EUR200.1 million, while operating income, or EBIT, amounted to EUR126.6 million, down 7.4% compared with 2007. The falling returns were attributed to an increase in investments, and a drop in network roaming revenues from both domestic and international operators. In 2008, VIPnet invested EUR73.6 million in new technologies and network coverage, and its total customer base grew by 14.1% to 2.5 million. The company concentrated on winning post-paid users, with its proportion of users on contracts rising from 20.5% to 22.8% in the year, but its parent reported that its overall market share of Croatian subscribers fell from 43% to 42.2%.