not vested
China Mobile sees huge revenue fall
by Aylin Huang
China Mobile (0941) said yesterday revenue this year could fall by 7 billion yuan (HK$7.94 billion) as a result of its plan to cancel roaming fees before October 1 and cut further fees in its subscription plans.
The largest mobile telecom services provider by market capitalization expects the revenue fall to escalate to 19 billion yuan next year due mainly to the scrapping of roaming fees.
Executive director Shang Bing said China Mobile will strive harder to generate more customers to cushion the impact of the fall in subscription fees and loss of roaming fees.
Chief executive Li Yue said the company will not offer unlimited data plans in the mainland, lest it suffers a loss in the future.
He admitted China Mobile might lose customers to rival China Telecom Corporation (0728) which is offering unlimited data plans.
But China Mobile won't follow its rival's lead as the move generates profits in the short term, but losses in the long term as the volume of consumed data rises.
Meanwhile, the firm saw in April a 40 percent plunge from March in the number of its 4G customers.
Despite the setback, China Mobile still expects to generate 100 million new 4G customers this year, Shang said.
He attributed the April fall to stiffening competition in the mobile market and weaker sales
Separately, the company's unit in Hong Kong supports the proposal of Hong Kong telecom authorities to offer a hybrid form of mobile spectrum to local mobile operators, Li said.
Source: The Standard