Taiwan Mobile Co (台灣大哥大), the nation’s most profitable telecom operator, on Wednesday said that revenue for last month grew 7.6 percent from a year earlier, boosted by robust sales of the new iPhone 11 series and growth from its e-commerce subsidiary.
Revenue expanded to NT$10.36 billion (US$335.8 million) from NT$9.64 billion a year earlier, company data showed.
Demand for the iPhone 11 series helped lift the company’s gross sales by 13 percent annually and raised subscriptions for high-rate plans, Taiwan Mobile chief financial officer Rosie Yu (俞若奚) said in a statement.
Sales of the new iPhone series soared 30 percent year-on-year during the first three days of its launch, compared with sales of older-generation iPhones last year, with most buyers subscribing to the company’s NT$1,399 monthly rate plan, the company said.
Momo.com Inc (富邦媒), its TV and online retailing arm, on Tuesday reported that revenue for last month grew 30 percent from a year, which also helped advance Taiwan Mobile’s revenue.
The subsidiary, which contributed 40 percent to Taiwan Mobile revenue in the second quarter, has become an important unit for the telecom, Yu said.
For the first nine months of the year, Taiwan Mobile accumulated NT$90.31 billion in net revenue, up 3.6 percent from the same period last year, company data showed.
However, net profit dipped 9.6 percent annually to NT$9.53 billion during the same period, as the rising revenue was offset by high operating costs, including depreciation expenses on its equipment and license fees, the company said.
Its earnings per share (EPS) fell to NT$3.46, which still outperformed rival Chunghwa Telecom Co’s (中華電信) EPS of NT$3.22.
Chunghwa Telecom saw its net profit shrink 7.7 percent to NT$25.01 billion in the third quarter, while revenue slid 3.5 percent annually to NT$152.29 billion.
The telecom also benefited from strong iPhone 11 sales, as well as its Internet value-added services, but the robust growth in sales was offset by continued declines in fixed-line voice calls amid intense competition from online social media service providers, it said.
Far EasTone Telecommunications Co (遠傳電信) saw its revenue rise 7.12 percent last month to NT$7.75 billion from NT$7.23 billion in August.
However, third-quarter revenue fell 2.64 percent year-on-year to NT$62.65 billion.
Net profit fell 14.84 percent to NT$6.6 billion in the first three quarters. EPS slid to NT$2.03.
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