DIVIDEND CHOP
AIS will start its revised semi-annual dividend payment in 2017 by paying out a minimum of 70% of net profit instead of 100%.
Advanced Info Service (AIS) will start its revised semi-annual dividend payment in 2017 by paying out a minimum of 70% of its net profit in dividends instead of 100% as before.
The revision by the country’s largest mobile operator is aimed at preparing cash reserves for servicing debt incurred from the auction of the 900-megahertz licence, budgeting investment for this year’s planned auctions for several spectrum bands and financing new partnerships.
“The revision of our dividend policy is needed to manage our cash flow to finance business expansion to fuel growth through 2020. This includes paying licensing fees of 59 billion baht for the use of the 900MHz spectrum through 2020,” said Nattiya Poapongsakorn, AIS’s vice-president for investor relations.
AIS also wants to secure additional frequencies on the 850-, 1800-, 2300- and 2600MHz bands that the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission initially planned to auction over the next three to five years.
“We’re preparing for the uptake of 5G wireless broadband technology and the Internet of Things,” Ms Nattiya said.
AIS expects its consolidated revenue to grow by 4-5% in 2017, outpacing the overall industry growth rate of 3-4%, she said.
The company saw just a 1.6% increase in revenue growth to 122 billion baht last year, mainly due to intense competition in the local mobile market.
AIS plans to invest 45 billion baht this year. Of the total, 40 billion is slated for 4G network coverage expansion and the remaining 5 billion will be spent on expanding the fixed-line broadband network.
Ms Nattiya said AIS will allocate at least 5 billion baht to its fixed broadband business annually over the next three years as the company strives to become one of top three players in the market.
AIS had 300,000 fixed broadband subscribers after it introduced the service last year.
The number of fixed broadband internet households in Thailand could reach 10 million in 2020, up from an expected 7.6 million in 2017.
The company’s fixed broadband network covers 5.7 million households across 28 provinces nationwide.
She said AIS aims to sustain its mobile leadership with a 50% market share of total mobile service revenue.
Last year, Thailand’s telecom service revenue totalled 313 billion baht. Of the total, 244 billion came from wireless service, and 69 billion from fixed-line internet broadband.
Thailand’s overall wireless service revenue is expected to grow by 4% to 254 billion in 2017, while fixed broadband is projected to expand by 15% to 78 billion baht.
AIS counts 4.7 million 2G customers on its 900MHz network. The company plans to allocate the 900MHz band for greater use of 4G service over the next few years.
“Network capability is a critical factor to help fuel our data revenue growth, as our mobile data revenue accounted for 49% of the total while voice revenue made up only 39%,” Ms Nattiya said.