BT Ireland has passed the break-even point for the first time and signalled its intention to enter the mobile market whenever it can lease block time from the established operators in the field.
While Vodafone and O2 are resisting moves by ComReg to oblige them to open their networks to new operators, BT Ireland said yesterday that it was preparing to enter the market once mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) contracts become available.
Despite an appeal by the biggest mobile operators to the Electronic Communications Appeals Panel, BT Ireland chief executive Bill Murphy said his company was already talking to Vodafone, O2 and Meteor.
"We will definitely become an MVNO operator in Ireland. I believe we will be started within the next six months. This is happening all over Europe and it needs to happen in Ireland," said Mr Murphy.
He indicated that BT Ireland could start such a mobile operation with an investment of only €2 million and an MVNO contract was its "preferred option" when asked whether the company might bid for the Meteor business if it was put on the market.
"If that doesn't happen we would look at all possibilities."
The company, which employs 900 in the Republic and changed its name last month from Esat BT, said it earned its first operating profits in the January-March period, the final quarter of its financial year.
"We've gone from losing hundreds of millions of euro a year to the point of breakeven... We expect to build on it and to start generating an economic profit for the company," Mr Murphy.
Revenues grew 29 per cent to €372 million in the year to the end of March while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation rose 13 per cent to €43 million .
The company attributed the move past the break-even point to the increased revenues, and a 4 per cent reduction in operating costs. Mr Murphy said BT Ireland reported "good growth" in its consumer, carrier and corporate divisions last year.
With the consumer business up 20 per cent year-on-year, BT Ireland now has 35,000 broadband customers and 100,000 dial-up internet and voice-line customers.
In a drive to build market share, the company cut its published prices this week for phone and internet services.
Esat BT reported a loss of €24 million in the year to the end of March 2004, an improvement on the previous year when it lost €95.8 million. The company had accumulated losses of €401.5 million at the start of the most recent financial year.
