Kabel Deutschland sees stronger growth, Vodafone to complete on Monday

Kabel Deutschland, whose acquisition by Vodafone will be completed on Monday, saw a net increase of 55,000 premium TV customers and 84,000 internet and telephony customers in its second fiscal quarter.

The rise in pay TV customers follows a weak first quarter that saw growth of only 24,000 customers. The second quarter saw the migration of 15,000 Kabel BW customers previously supplied by Kabel Deutschland’s wholesale offering back to the Liberty Global company.

The internet and telephony figure compares with a net increase of 71,000 in the first quarter to June 30. The cable operator said that it supplied a total of almost 2.1 million customers with its broadband products as of September 30.

Revenues for the second quarter were up by €7 million to €471 million after a dip in the first quarter.

The improved performance led Kabel Deutschland to reverse an adjustment on its outlook for the year made to account for the loss of carriage fees from the country’s public broadcasters.

The completion of Vodafone’s acquisition of Kabel Deutschland will take place on Monday October 14, leading to a restructuring of the company’s debt. Vodafone Germany is providing new finance in the amount of €2.15 billion with a due date of June 2020 and an additional €300 million credit line with a maturity date of March 2019.

The takeover triggers additional expenses to Kabel Deutschland of about €205 million, which it said would have an impact on its net income for the current year.