Liberty Global’s acquisition of Unitymedia in January has impacted strongly on its Q1 results. The UPC Broadband Division has posted revenues of $2,178.9 million (€1,710.2 million) for the quarter, an increase of 28.4% on the same period in 2009.
Those for Unitymedia in Q1 amounted to €230.2 million, with Unitymedia Cable accounting for €226.8 million and arena €3.4 million. Growth in Liberty Global’s operations in Western Europe was particularly strong, with rebased revenues increasing for the fourth consecutive quarter.
Growth in general was driven by strong demand for advanced services, especially the company’s next-generation broadband products.
On the down side, subscriber numbers for the UPC Direct DTH platform continued to fall in what was the last quarter before the switch from Astra to the one degree West orbital slot – down by 4,500 q-o-q in the case of the Czech Republic, bringing the total to below the 100,000 mark.
Furthermore, although UPC Broadband’s digital cable take-up continued to grow impressively in CEE in Q1, it was offset by higher reductions in analogue cable subscribers. A similar trend was noted in Western Europe.
