Telecoms giant BT reported a two per cent rise in its full-year profits to £2.5bn for the year to 31 March, but revenues for the year slipped five per cent to £18bn.
BT beat analysts' expectations of a five per cent drop in revenue for the company's fourth quarter, with revenue down two per cent year on year. It pointed towards a strong performance in its consumer business where revenue was flat for the quarter for the first time in five years.
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The firm has had a busy year as it continued to roll out its fibre-to-the-cabinet (FTTC) broadband, of which more than 1.5 million customers are now signed up to at a wholesale level.
Critics believe that FTTC is not 'real' fibre-optic broadband as it relies on copper, and BT's fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) broadband – which is considered the real deal by critics – will be available for consumers on demand later this year.
Also this year, BT's subsidiary Niche Spectrum Ventures won 4G spectrum in the 2.6GHz range, for which it paid a base price of £186m and an additional £15m to secure preferred locations in the frequency bands.
And yesterday, in a controversial move, the company said it would offer free Premier League football to its broadband customers, in an attempt to break BSkyB's stranglehold over sports broadcasting in the UK.
BT's shares rose by more than eight per cent to 305p, as investors backed BT to win over consumers with their broadband, broadcast and telephone services, against Sky, Virgin and TalkTalk, which offer competitive alternatives in the triple-play market.
"In an environment where it is easier to focus only on the short-term, we are investing in our future and delivering growth in profits and dividends. We are driving fibre across the UK, launching high-quality sports channels, investing in the high-growth regions of the world and will use our Wi-Fi capabilities and 4G spectrum to make sure our customers will be the best connected," said BT's chief executive, Ian Livingston.
BT claimed it has created about 3,000 new jobs in the UK over the last year to support its investments.
"We have a lot more to do but we are now a lot better positioned to do it," Livingston added.
