OTE's strategy in all areas of the company's activity, such as mobile, fixed, broadband, television, B2B, was presented today by the Group's President and CEO, Mr. Michalis Tsamaz, in the context of a comprehensive information meeting with representatives of the press.
As Mr. Tsamaz mentioned, the creation of the best infrastructure in the country and the customer experience are the main pillars of the OTE Group's strategy for 2014.
This year alone, the company plans to install approximately 1,000 new cabins, expanding VDSL availability to 30% of households, and further increase 4G population coverageto 70%. With total investments of 1.2 billion euros in Greece over the next 4 years, mainly in Next Generation fixed and mobile networks, the company aspires to achieve its goal of being able to provide 50 Mbps to at least 65% of the population and 100 Mbps to 50% by 2020.
In terms of customer experience, OTE's goal is to "establish itself as the No. 1 company in the hearts and choices of customers", by offering excellent products & services, providing an excellent service experience and cultivating a customer experience culture within the company. To this end, emphasis is placed on employee training.
On a commercial level, the Group achieved many successes during the past year. VDSL exceeded 50,000 , while OTE TV more than doubled its subscriber base, closing 2013 with 250,000 customers. OTE TV customers today have exceeded 275,000. COSMOTE, as mentioned, continues to outperform the competition in a market that has shrunk by half since 2007 – as reflected in the increase in the share of revenue from services and EBITDA of the Group's mobile company.
Mr. Tsamaz pointed out the ICT sector as a new source of revenue for the Group and confirmed that OTE will take part in the SYZEFXIS II project, as well as in the government's announced project for the national WiFi network.
Regarding the possibility of a legal merger between OTE and COSMOTE, he clarified that this is not a priority, while addressing EETT, he reiterated the company's request for transparent and fair regulation.
Commenting on the broader telecommunications market, the head of OTE did not fail to mention the so-called OTTs (Over the top players), such as Google and Facebook, as competing companies with telecommunications providers, as they use ready-made networks, with constantly increasing capacity requirements, without contributing to investments. He even spoke of the need for intervention by regulatory authorities, in Europe and beyond, to find a solution, such as imposing a special fee.
Finally, Mr. Tsamaz appeared positive about the prospects of the Greek economy and, commenting on the financial environment, assessed that the first signs of recovery are emerging, however, he assessed that it is very likely that this improvement will initially be reflected in the indicators and later be felt by citizens.
