BT's Profits Plunge as it Loses Over 200,000 Broadband Customers
The telecom giant BT has faced a significant setback, losing more than 200,000 broadband customers in the last three months of 2025. This decline is primarily attributed to its shared ownership of the pay TV broadcaster TNT Sports, which has taken a toll on its financial performance. The company's profits have plummeted, falling 57% year on year to £183 million, with a substantial £214 million of the £244 million drop directly linked to its share of losses at TNT Sports.
Despite this challenging quarter, BT's CEO, Allison Kirkby, remains confident in meeting its annual financial forecasts. However, the company's shares took a hit, dropping 1% on Thursday. The situation is even more dire for Vodafone, which reported a 6% decline in shares after missing revenue expectations in its third quarter.
In the UK, VodafoneThree, a joint venture between Vodafone and Three, saw a 0.5% revenue decline. This decline was accompanied by a loss of 73,000 mobile contract customers, primarily low-value business customers. However, Vodafone's CEO, Margherita Della Valle, highlighted a positive trend, noting a 3.1 percentage point improvement in customer churn rate at Three UK over the past six months since the takeover deal. Across all its brands, including Voxi and Smarty, Vodafone reported a 1.7 percentage point reduction in churn rate year on year.
These developments underscore the intense competition in the telecom industry, where customer loyalty and retention are key to success.
