This Thursday, March 16, at the presentation of its annual results, Iliad CEO Thomas Reynaud smiled. The group ended the year ranked first in terms of new subscriber acquisitions in the three countries in which it operates, placing it sixth in Europe in terms of mobile and fixed-line subscribers. It claims to have achieved “most” of the goals of its Odyssey 2024 strategic plan two years ahead of schedule.
Group turnover for the year increased by 10.3% to 8.4 billion euros, in France – by 6.9%. Operating profit rose 12% at the group level and 4.7% in France. “Unique results in the industry,” says Thomas Raynaud.
The strongest conquest in 10 years
In France, this is the best commercial result in ten years for Free, which attracted 255,000 new subscribers on landlines and 607,000 on mobile phones. 65% of fixed subscribers switched to fiber. Income per fixed subscriber increased by 2.2%, and per mobile subscriber – by 3.6%.
Terminal revenue also increased by 18% thanks to the success of the Free Flex (lease with option to buy) offering, which offers a mobile phone purchase price spread that is decoupled from the plan price. Free Flex volumes are up 46% and three out of four mobile phones sold through this channel are 5G smartphones.
The business unit, now called Free Pro, had a turnover of 200 million euros. Iliad wants to continue its commercial efforts in this market, aiming to at least double revenue by 2025. He plans to launch cybersecurity offerings, scale in the cloud with Scaleway, and enter the Italian company market from 2023.
Upcoming purchases
If France still represents two-thirds of the income of the Iliad, then this will not last long. “We want to become one of the top three European telecom operators,” said Thomas Reynaud. The acquisitions are clearly not over for the Iliad, which must seek growth beyond its borders. Perhaps with the blessing of the European Union, Thierry Breton last February proposed to the antitrust authorities to encourage “cross-border consolidation” of the telecommunications market.
Selected for you