At no cost actual time breaking information alerts despatched straight to your inbox signal as much as our breaking information emails
Signal as much as our free breaking information emails
Signal as much as our free breaking information emails
Virgin Media O2 has issued a warning concerning anticipated declines in gross sales and earnings for 2026, following vital buyer attrition attributed to current worth will increase.
The telecoms large reported a internet lack of 397,500 cellular subscribers final yr, with a considerable 164,800 departing within the remaining quarter, primarily as a result of O2’s worth changes.
Final October, the corporate introduced an extra month-to-month improve of £2.50 for its 15.6 million cellular prospects, efficient from spring 2026, revising an earlier proposed rise of £1.80.
Concurrently, Virgin Media O2 noticed 138,400 broadband prospects depart in 2025, together with 16,700 within the final three months of the yr.
The corporate’s annual outcomes indicated a 0.4 per cent decline in underlying earnings for the yr, reaching £3.9bn, following a extra pronounced 2.4 per cent drop throughout the remaining three months.
open picture in gallery
When adjusted to exclude its current transaction with business-to-business supplier Daisy, the group reported a 0.9 per cent improve in earnings over the complete yr, although they nonetheless noticed a 1.3 per cent lower within the final quarter.
Trying forward, Virgin Media O2 issued a warning concerning probably steeper monetary declines within the coming yr, anticipating a continuation of what it described as “difficult market situations”.
It’s guiding in direction of a drop in underlying earnings of three per cent to five per cent, stripping out its takeover of Daisy, whereas underlying whole service revenues are additionally anticipated to drop by 3 per cent to five per cent.
Virgin Media O2 and Daisy Group final yr merged their enterprise communications and IT operations to create a telecoms firm with gross sales of about £1.4bn a yr, known as O2 Daisy.
Get a free fractional share price as much as £100.Capital in danger.
Phrases and situations apply.
Go to web site
ADVERTISEMENT
Get a free fractional share price as much as £100.Capital in danger.
Phrases and situations apply.
Go to web site
ADVERTISEMENT
Virgin Media O2 stated the decrease gross sales outlook “displays heightened promotional depth and ongoing uncertainty within the client mounted market, alongside the deliberate streamlining of the business-to-business product portfolio”.
open picture in gallery
It should look to make price financial savings to offset the impression.
Lutz Schuler, chief govt of Virgin Media O2, stated: “Whereas we count on difficult market situations to proceed in 2026, we’re nicely positioned to grab the fitting alternatives in every of our enterprise areas – client, business-to-business and wholesale – and the foundations we’re putting in immediately will assist to construct long-term buyer belief and gasoline future profitability and money technology.”
Virgin Media O2 was shaped in 2021 after the £31bn mega merger between Virgin Media, owned by Liberty World, and O2, the community owned by Spanish rival Telefonica.
On Wednesday, Liberty World, Telefonica and personal fairness agency InfraVia joined forces to purchase British various fibre agency Substantial Group for £2bn.
The teams stated the three way partnership deal will strengthen its place competing in opposition to BT’s Openreach, the UK’s greatest fibre broadband agency and community operator.
open picture in gallery
Substantial, which runs fibre community Netomnia, is predicted to have greater than 3.4 million fibre premises and over 500,000 prospects by the completion of the deal, the corporations stated.
Nexfibre – Liberty World, Telefonica and InfraVia’s three way partnership enterprise – will take over Substantial in a deal which is ready to broaden it cowl to eight million premises throughout the UK by the tip of 2027.
Nonetheless, rivals have already raised potential competitors issues over the transfer.
Simon Holden, chief govt officer of CityFibre, stated: “There may be an 80 per cent overlap between these two gamers and, if the deal goes forward, it might considerably cut back competitors and the selection accessible to shoppers, in addition to power tons of of 1000’s of Netomnia prospects again to Virgin Media O2.
“Given the dimensions of this overlap, the CMA should totally look at the deal.
“Competitors has pushed decrease costs, sooner speeds and higher providers – and this deal dangers re-establishing an ineffective duopoly of BT and VMO2 and undermining the numerous progress the UK has made.”
