TM records a 3.4% growth with the help of multimedia and data services

Telekom Malaysia Berhad (TM) has seen a 3.4% growth in group revenue to RM8.82 billion for the first nine months that ended 30 September 2016. This was against RM8.54 billion recorded in the corresponding period last year, due to higher revenue contribution from internet, data and others services.The stronger nine months’ performance was mainly attributed to positive growth in its key products, mainly Internet and multimedia, data and other services.Tan Sri Zamzamzairani Mohd Isa, group CEO, TM said the company remained resilient over the first nine months of the year despite an overall “challenging environment”. He added that its LTE service, webe, is now officially operational, and still has an impact on its financial performance, on account of the costs associated with the LTE rollout and Webe’s initial operations.Webe, which was formerly known as Packet One Networks, officially launched on 30 September with a single plan which offers subscribers unlimited data, calls and messages for as low as RM79 monthly.“2016 is the ‘Year of Convergence’ for TM Group as we stake our claim as Malaysia’s Convergence Champion. I’m pleased to say that we are the first and only truly converged communication service provider in Malaysia with webe now being offered to all Malaysians. webe was made available for public subscription in September 2016, offering a brand new end-to-end digital experience,” he said adding that webe allows consumers to make the most of mobile technology thus making their digital lifestyle easier.“This is in line with our vision of ‘Making Life and Business Easier for a Better Malaysia’,” Tan Sri Zam added.The company also recorded a 3.3% increase in total broadband customers YTD as compared to last year, from 2.29 million to 2.37 million. Most recently, Recently, TM had reached an agreement  worth RM916.10million with MYTV Broadcasting (MYTV). This was to provide digital terrestrial television infrastructure, network facilities and related services.The group also reported that the operating profit was RM868.1 million on year-to-date(YTD), lower by 13% against last year primarily due to higher marketing cost, foreign exchange loss on international trade settlement and accelerated depreciation of assets.The total capital expenditure for YTD September 2016 was RM1.65 billion or 18.7% of revenue, with spending during 3Q2016 at RM715.0 million. The higher Capex is in line with the expansion of major projects whilst higher YTD cost as a percentage of revenue is in line with higher revenue and launch of new products and services.Read also: Telekom Malaysia launches new interactive retail outlet