UPC continues to lose customers and generates less revenue in 2019
As in the previous two years, cable network operator UPC saw a drop in sales in Switzerland last year. Sales declined by 3.5 percent to CHF 1.25 billion.
In the final quarter, however, UPC has grown compared to the third quarter. Sales increased there by 1.8 percent to 312.7 million francs, as the company belonging to the British telecom group Liberty Global announced on Friday.
UPC succeeded in significantly slowing the decline in subscriber numbers, it said. After losing around 153,000 subscriptions in 2018, the figure was 68,000 last year. In addition, the company achieved its best customer satisfaction figures since 2009.
On track with growth plan
Baptiest Coopmans, who has been at the helm of UPC Switzerland since the beginning of February, believes the company is on track with its growth plan. He wants to further establish the TV platform and the gigabit offering on the market and gain customers in the mobile and fixed-network offerings.
More than a year ago, UPC launched a program to stem the loss of customers with special promotions. UPC doubled the maximum Internet speed and launched new mobile communications offerings following Salt's switch to Swisscom's mobile network. Work was also carried out on service quality.
UPC is making gains in mobile communications: Last year, UPC Mobile gained 54,000 new subscribers, bringing the total number to over 200,000. The company suffered a bloodletting in the TV business. More than 90,000 subscribers were lost. UPC reported a slight decline in subscriber numbers in the Internet and fixed-network segments.
In the business customer segment, however, UPC in Switzerland is growing. Sales were up 5.2 percent last year. UPC invested in product quality and the availability of gigabit Internet speeds throughout Switzerland, it said. UPC signed new or expanded contracts with Migros, SV Hotel and Schaffhauser Kantonalbank.
Failed acquisition
However, 2019 at UPC was dominated by the failed takeover by competitor Sunrise (Werbewoche.ch reported). The CHF 6.3 billion deal was called off in October. It failed due to opposition from Sunrise's major shareholders, led by Germany's Freenet, who criticized the high purchase price.
Thus, another attempt to create a stronger challenger to the industry leader Swisscom in the Swiss telecommunications market failed. Nine years ago, the Swiss Federal Competition Commission (Comco) had banned the planned merger of Sunrise and Orange on competition grounds. However, the antitrust watchdogs had no objections to Sunrise's purchase of UPC.
Following the collapse of the merger, there was a change of management at UPC Switzerland at the beginning of February: Severina Pascu handed over the reins to Baptiest Coopmans. (Werbewoche.ch reported). Pascu, 46, joined Virgin Media, which is the largest subsidiary of Liberty Global. There she serves as Deputy CEO and Chief Financial Officer. (SDA)
