Week 48 in Telecoms, Internet, Media

Corporate

• KPN: Strategy update: Accelerate to Grow
• FTTH roll-out accelerates to 500k HP from 2021
• expands current savings program to EUR 375-400m, new program EUR 250m for 2021-2023
• capex 2021-2023 raised to EUR 3.5b o/w 1.4b for FTTH
• FTTH penetration to 50% by 2023, 65% by 2025 (double from current penetration), longer term 80%
• outlook 2020: adj EBITDA AL 2.32b, capex 1.1b, FCF 750m, div 13c
• outlook 2021: adj EBITDA AL up, capex 1.2b, FCF 750m , div growth 3-5%
• outlook 2023: adj EBITDA AL >2.45b, capex 1.1-1.2b, FCF >870m, div growth 3-5%
• SR from mass market (Consumer, SME, Wholesale; 75% of rev, 90% of EBITDA) return to growth end 2021; LCE market lags SME by 1-2 yr
• to improve MijnKPN app for Consumer and service modules for SME
• aggregator for entertainment for Consumer, one-stop shop for SME with 3rd-party services for security, cloud, workspace
• savings induced by corona virus (increased working from home, less office space)
• cash tax: EUR 50-60m in 2021 (from  fiscal unity and loss compensation rules), then 150m EUR/yr (reduced loss compensation but tax losses will be available indefinitely)
• target leverage ratio <2.5; to digitalise customer journey
• Orange: Denies rumor of planning offer for ATOS
• Vodafone: Rumor: Vodafone ES plans merger with MasMovil, Vodafone to own 60-80%
• Altice Europe
• Next launches offer, plans EGM 210107, offer period 201125-210121: 4.11 EUR/share cash
• EC approves acquisition of Covage by SFR FTTH (Altice Europe 49.99%, Piaf BidCo (OMERS, Allianz, AXA Infrastructure Equity 1 AFS SAS, IST3 Investor Foundation; controlled by OMERS & Allianz) 50.01%) [see 191125], with conditions over reduced wholesale & retail competitions: to sell 95% of Covage's wholesale FTTO business (30 institutions)

• Liberty Global: Acquires Phoenix Works (Leeds; EV charging, solar, battery storage)
• Telenet: Interested in VOO
• DPG Media puts Mobile Vikings (Full MVNO on Orange BE) & JIM Mobile up for sale; 300k active subs (334k subs icl JIM Mobile) 
• Telesat: Plans merger with major shareholder Loral Space & Communications to form Telesat Corp (listed), focus on LEO (298 sats); plans IPO mid 2021
• ViacomCBS: Sells Simon & Schuster to Penguim Random House (= Bertelsmann), $2.17b cash   
• Google: Rumor: plans to acquire ShareChat (India), $1b [a la TikTok]
• Bytedance: CFIUS delays deadline for finding TikTok US buyer to 201204
• Slack: Rumor: Salesforce plans offer
• Square: Acquires Credit Karma Tax (free do-it-yourself tax-filing service), $50m
• Stripe: Bloomberg: to raise funds at $70-100b valuation

Networks

• Fixed
• TIM: EC approves FiberCop (access network) spin-off and stake sale to KKR (37.5%), Fastweb receives 4.5% from contributing stake in JV Flash Fiber - To share fiber with Intred, 5 yr
• Proximus: Plans JV with EQT Infrastructure V [replacing Delta Fiber], to close 21Q1, to connect 1.5m premises in Flanders to open FTTP; to be owned 49.9% by Proximus, EQT 50.1%; target 4.2m premises (= 70%) in BE by 2028 remains; interim target 2025 raised 30%; plans update mid Jan 2021
• UK reduces fiber ambition from 100 to minimum 85% by 2025, budget remains GBP 5b 
• Vodafone DE plans FTTP to 150k homes & 23k businesses
• KPN plans quantum network in Randstad, with QuTech (= TU Delft, TNO), SURF, OPNT [all members of TKI = Topconsortium voor Kennis en Innovatie]
• 5G
• ZTE report: on 5G Uplink Enhancement Technology 
• Launches
• A1 Bulgaria launches 5G in Sofia 
• Orange LU launches 5G in Luxembourg City, no price premium; with Nokia 
• Togocel (= TogoCom) launches 5G in Lome (Togo) 
• Orange FR plans 5G (3.5 GHz supplemented by 2.1 GHz) launch 201203 in 15 munis, target 160 munis YE 2020 
• SKT completes 5G core (cloud native) based on Release 16, with Samsung 
• BNA (DE): Private 5G (3.7 GHz) submissions 93, granted 88 
• MTS (Russia) plans Private 5G at Polimetall (gold mining), with Ericsson 
• Sunrise plans 5G Smart Stadium at FC Basel (incl Sunrise CamCheck: replay from 4 different camera positions) 
• ITU completes evaluation of 3 technologies for IMT-2020 (5G): 3GPP 5G-SRIT (submitted by 3GPP), 3GPP 5G-RIT (submitted by 3GPP), 5Gi (submitted by Telecommunications Standards Development Society India (TSDSI)) 
• KPN launches #6 5G FieldLab: for healthcare applications 
• Citycom Telecommunication Graz (= Holding Graz) orders 5G network for Graz & Steiermark from Nokia, focus on IoT, to offer Private networks; to launch 21Q1 with 50 macro sites (target 200) 
• Telenor NO launches FWA over 5G service (max 100 Mb/s, 1000 NOK/mo; 10 Mb/s for 600 NOK/mo), data cap 2 TB/mo (at overage throttling to 5 Mb/s) 
• Telefonica DE trials live sports broadcast over 5G, with Sky DE 201206 at handball match, footage from 12 smartphones 
• UK may ban Huawei from 5G earlier than expected (2022) - Huawei to be banned from Sep 2021 
• Russian State Commission on Radio Frequencies decides 5G will use exclusively domestic equipment 

Services

• Video
• Netflix: To expand ABQ Studios (New Mexico), to spend $1b on production`- UK production spend 2020 rises to GBP 750m
• ProSieben: Distr deal for ProSieben Fun, Sat.1 Emotions, Kabel Eins Classics with Amazon Prime Channels, 4 EUR/mo each or bundle (Seven Entertainment package) 6 EUR/mo
• Web services
• Facebook: FT: to launch Libra currency Jan 2021, backed by USD, dependent on approval from Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority
• Snap: Launches Spotlight feature (tab): short-form video (curated, creators receive $1m per day) [a la TikTok]
• Smart city
• Glasgow interim report on 2018 smart city plan of 73 actions over 5 yr: 12 complete, 43 in development, 11 to begin; joins MetroLab Network for smart city innovation; reaches 3500 intelligent streetlights, 3600 WiFi hotspots in schools

Regulatory

• RU (Slovakia) ends multiband auction (700, 900, 1800), raises EUR 100m; Orange, O2, Slovak Telekom 2x10 each in 700 band; O2 2x4.2 MHz in 900 band; O2, Slovak Telekom, Swan Mobile 2x3 MHz each in 1800 band
• EU approves 6 GHz band for WiFi (480 MHz)
• Google: US State AGs (Texas, Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Utah) plan antitrust lawsuit Dec 2020