Dutch cable operator Ziggo has said the number of its digital TV customers grew by 111,000 and subscribers for paid digital TV by 24,000 during Q1 2011. Customers of the All-in-1 Bundle increased by 45,000 subscribers to more than 1.1 million in total.
Penetration for digital TV was 63% of all homes connected at the end of Q1, up 4% from the previous quarter. Approximately 48% of digital TV customers subscribed to an extended tier and/or premium services. Penetration for broadband internet was 52% of its customer base.
The total number of homes served was slightly down from 3,087,000 on December 31, 2010 to 3,063,000 on March 31, 2011. The number of digital TV customers was up from 1,804,00 to 1,915,000. Ziggo offers its basic digital TV tier at no additional cost to tits analogue subscribers.
The total number of extended digital and premium digital subscribers was up from 897,000 (December 31, 2010) to 921,000 (March 31, 2011). The number of broadband homes was 1,578,000 (up from 1,549,000) and the number of telephony homes was 1,212,000 (up from 1,167,000).
In a statement, Ziggo CEO Bernard Dijkhuizen said: “Ziggo continued its growth in the first quarter of 2011, demonstrating the strength of our strategy and operations. With new innovations for our television offering, increased internet speeds for our customers and our continued focus on further improving our customer service, we are convinced we will strengthen our position in the consumer market and exploit its considerable further growth potential in the year ahead.”
The financial highlights of Q1 2011 include:
• Revenue of €360.9 million, up 6.5% versus Q1 last year
• Adjusted EBITDA of €205.2 million, up 5.0% versus Q1 last year
• Free operating cash flow of €146.0 million, up 39.6% versus Q1 last year
• Net Debt to adjusted EBITDA leverage ratio down to 4.3x at March 31, 2011 compared to 4.5x at December 31, 2010
