Optus Business has revealed it has been affected by “weak business sentiments” brought on by the disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The company saw revenue declines in every segment in the year ended 31 March 2020, taking massive hits to overall revenue and EBITDA.
Overall operating revenue for the period came in at $1.2 billion, down 16.5 percent from $1.4 billion in 2019. EBITDA meanwhile was $96 million for the period, down 56 percent from $217 million the previous year.
Managed services also saw the biggest decline on a per segment basis, with revenue down 20.3 percent from $524 million to $418 million, while security services declined 7.9 percent from $110 million to $101 million.
Voice and data services saw revenue declines due to “continued price erosion”. Data and internet services declined 16.3 percent from $300 million to $251 million in Q4 2019 for the period, while fixed voice services declined 17.8 percent from $243 million to $200 million in 2019.
For Optus as a whole, operating revenue declined 2 percent to $9 billion, with higher NBN migration revenue offsetting lower equipment and service revenues.
In Q4 2020, operating revenue declined 9 percent to $2.1 billion due to lower service and equipment sales revenues and weaker consumer sentiment following recent natural disasters and the early impacts of COVID-19.
Optus chief executive Kelly Bayer Rosmarin said, “It has been a challenging year for our industry as consumer demand has slowed compared with the previous year, and these challenges have intensified in the last quarter as Australia managed through natural disasters and COVID-19 impacted the economy.”
“However, recent events have underscored the importance of our essential services to Australia. I am confident that the fundamentals of our business remain strong and I am optimistic that our strategy - underpinned by an unwavering focus on our customers - will continue to drive our performance as economic conditions and consumer sentiment recover.
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