MANILA, Philippines - Globe Telecom on Tuesday said its profits fell 76% in the first quarter, on the back of higher expenses for its on-going network upgrade and transformation program.
In a disclosure, Globe said its net income reached P656 million in the January to March period, significantly lower than the P2.701 billion in the same period last year.
Globe president and chief executive officer Ernest Cu said core income rose 13% to P3.086 billion in the first quarter, from P2.74 billion a year ago.
"We are encouraged by the results we delivered in the first quarter of 2013 despite the continued challenges raised by competition and in the midst of this most critical period as we complete our network and IT modernization programs," he said.
Globe's consolidated service revenues rose 6% to P21.368 billion in the first quarter, led by 23% growth in its broadband business and 11% in its fixed line data. The fixed line voice business saw a 2% drop in revenues.
Globe's revenues from its mobile business reached P17.8 billion, followed by its broadband with P2.48 billion.
"Our mobile business remains fundamentally strong and continues to be in an uptrend given the success of the programs that we have implemented in the past, most particularly, the revolutionary customizable plans that may now also be enjoyed by our prepaid subscribers," Cu said.
Cu said Globe has already completed the first phase of its $700 million network upgrade and transformation program.
"We believe that we will be able to sustain this strong performance as we become better-equipped to deliver enhanced services and ensure that all our subscribers get superior quality calls, texts, and browsing experience," he said.
Meanwhile, Globe said it was raising P7 billion from the issuance of retail treasury bonds (RTBs), to raise funds for capital expenditures and to prepay existing debt. The proposed bonds would be issued to both institutional and retail investors.
