Portugal Telecom reports steady Q1

Despite tough market conditions, Portugal Telecom has shown a steady performance in the first quarter of the year. While profit decreased, this was not unexpected as its main competitor, Zon Multimedia, also reported a drop in profit for the first quarter of 2009.
 

The group released its first quarter results today, showing a 2.1% increase in revenues from the same period in 2008. Basic earnings per share increased from €0.14 to €0.19.
 

Portugal Telecom has been losing fixed line market share in Portugal over the past few years, but this trend has started to reverse with the release of its triple play offering at the beginning of 2008. It has also done well with its and business solutions and digital TV services.
 

PT has also continued to strengthen its operations in the rest of the world: through partnering with strong local companies and concentrating on Portuguese-speaking markets, PT has established strong revenue streams from countries such as Brazil and placed itself in rapidly growing countries like Angola.
 

The operator has struggled to offer technologies in Europe that set it apart from its competitors. The triple-play technology it uses is not seen as innovative in Europe,  the company must invest in new technology to maintain its position.
 

By contrast, PT has been able to ensure market leadership in developing countries by applying what it has learned in Europe and now has its sights set on the Mozambican market.
 

Mozambique was expected to license a third mobile operator this year, but this process has been delayed, but PT has every intention of bidding once it is available.