All articles by Joe Purnell – Page 2
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Analyst BriefingBTwatch: lawsuits, losses, and leveraging networks
Analyst Briefing: CEO Allison Kirkby claims ‘solid delivery’ in the first half of the year, but no end is in sight for market challenges at all units. Investment in networks remains a focus, with next-gen services coming on line as legacy infra is shut down…
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Public AffairsVodafone hits out at German authorities in 1&1 antitrust case
German operator levels accusations of bias against the Federal Cartel Office in its investigation of alleged anti-competitive behaviour.
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Financial & PerformanceGuidance: H1 pace allows for H2 slowdown as Vodafone moves into cleaner air
Q2/H1 FY25–26: Group reaffirms FY outlook but expects to hit the upper end of earnings and free cash flow targets, buoyed by a strong first half that allows for lower growth in Q3 and Q4. Outgoing CFO Luka Mucic weighs prospects after he leaves and finds ‘net positives’…
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Financial & PerformanceSpend: capex down, opex up as Vodafone reaches ‘appropriate’ scale
Q2/H1 FY25–26: with the Group’s capital structure ‘reset’, CEO Margherita Della Valle considers investment levels to be at the right level in each market: spend balloons at newly scaled UK, Germany finds efficiencies and reduces capex, broadly stable elsewhere.
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Financial & PerformanceIn-depth: defiant Vodafone CEO eyes European rebound
Q2/H1 FY25–26: unwaveringly positive CEO claims right-sizing initiative has Vodafone moving in the right direction, and earnings largely back up the claim, but as some headwinds wane others are gathering on the horizon…
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Financial & Performance‘It’s in our hands’: Vodafone CEO closes Group ‘building site’, ready for upward momentum
Q2/H1 FY25–26: Margherita Della Valle is convinced that the pared back, refocused Vodafone Group is now well-positioned for “good growth”, and considers performance in the first half of the year to support her claim…
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Financial & PerformanceIn it for the long haul: BT CEO stays course despite knockbacks
Q2/H1 FY25–26 roundup: Allison Kirkby declares BT to have produced a ‘solid’ six months, and remains bullish on long-term promises, but earnings are yet to reflect efforts as rivals puts pressure on pricing and poach customers…
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Financial & PerformanceGuidance: modest FY to give way for BT’s ambitious 2030 vision
Q2/H1 FY25–26: lack of ambition in FY targets ensures BT remains on track, but end-of-decade goals require transformation acceleration, and soon…
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Financial & PerformanceSpend: BT leaning on AI, job cuts to fuel cost-savings agenda
Q2/H1 FY25–26: cost-cutting agenda running ahead of schedule, and more momentum could be added as AI is deployed more widely and new Chief Digital Officer Peter Leukert gets his hands dirty. Headcount cuts are another major earnings driver as Business and Openreach shrink back…
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Financial & PerformanceIn-depth: BT falling back amid competition
Q2/H1 FY25–26: Group in decline across most metrics of note, but management confident that groundwork (and network) is being laid for a bounce back soon…
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Network & InfraVodafone playing the satco market despite $1bn SpaceMobile bet
R&D lead Luke Ibbetson talks up billion-dollar investment in SpaceMobile, but Vodafone is playing matchmaker, not kingmaker, with ‘pragmatic’ approach to telco-satco partnerships determined by customer demand and technical requirements…
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Financial & PerformanceBT says Consumer ‘holding up’, despite ARPU slide — rejects MVNO B-brand
Q2/H1 FY25–26: UK incumbent ready to “compete and defend” against budget-focused rivals, doubling-down on unchanging multi-brand and convergence retail strategies. But lag in system means premium-first efforts are yet to be reflected in poor financials…
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Network & InfraOpenreach turns up the heat on legacy network migration as deadline looms
Access provider wields both carrot and stick in bid to hasten analogue-to-digital migrations, with price hikes and rental discounts among the incentives. Altnet rivals riled, CPs ‘welcome’ the move, and BT/Openreach set to benefit after initial 18-month drag…
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Financial & PerformanceVodafone unsure on Gigafactory economics — focused on ‘low-hanging B2B fruit’
Q2/H1 FY25–26: Fast-growing digital services now approximating €2bn annual revenue for Business growth engine, with intent to invest more in segment. Vodafone considers itself well placed for SMEs and sovereign cloud, but will not be rushed into big ticket AI data centre projects…
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Financial & PerformanceVodafone begins German bounce back
Q2/H1 FY25–26: Group CEO Margherita Della Valle claims that Vodafone Germany is benefiting from proactive moves to recover from recent lows, with service revenue growth the first fruit of its labour. MDU impact now lapped, 1&1 migration close to completion, and work ongoing to navigate competitive pressures to raise ARPU…
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M&AVodacom ‘keeping powder dry’ for fibre, data centre M&A opportunities
Q2/H1: CEO Shameel Joosub teases more deals and partnerships to come as South African fibreco deal nears completion, with more wireline infra and potential data centre tie-ups under consideration. While tower deals in Egypt are off the table, ears are open for a change at Safaricom…
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PeoplewatchBT Peoplewatch: brand strategy remains in the spotlight, former CEOs line up boardroom gigs
20+ senior and strategic changes across BT in November’s edition, including another notable appointment in the Group’s effort to revitalise its stable of brands; rumours that former CEO Philip Jansen is set for another high-flying boardroom role; network and security leadership changes; and more at TNT Sports, EE, and BT Business…
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Financial & PerformanceAfter nine years of decline, BT now stands at B2B turnaround ‘start line’
Q2 FY25–26: CEO heralds a reshaping, fully-focused BT Business now beginning its turnaround, nearly a decade after the Group last posted enterprise revenue growth. With International carved out, and several assets offloaded, greater scrutiny should be expected of what is left…
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Financial & PerformanceBT CEO snubs fibre M&A, doubling down on Openreach organic growth — despite accelerating line losses
Q2 FY25–26: Allison Kirkby showed little enthusiasm at thought of mopping up fibre altnets as part of much-anticipated consolidation, instead insisting Openreach is best focused on its own game, and set up to beat any incursion — notwithstanding line losses accelerating alarmingly…
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Analyst BriefingVodafonewatch: satellite deals, towers sales
Latest Vodafone Analyst Briefing: including moves in satellite and direct-to-device; a progress report from VodafoneZiggo on performance and a planned wireless infra divestment; installation of a new CEO at Vantage Towers; and more share price volatility at Vi…