Cyfrowy Polsat summarizes the year 2015 Over one million customers of the smartDOM program Nearly 97% of Poles within the LTE coverage

Cyfrowy Polsat Group published very good operating and financial results for 2015. The Group’s revenue exceeded PLN 9.8bn, with EBITDA of nearly PLN 3.7bn, and strong EBITDA margin at the level of 37.5%. The Group recorded a growth of the total number of contract services in the segment of services provided to individual and business customers, which had a positive impact on the level of ARPU per customer. In the broadcasting and television production segment, the channels from Polsat Group increased their viewership results, still holding the leading position, while observing a very dynamic growth of advertising revenue. The Group maintained high margins, reduced its debt and improved the level of Free Cash Flow. In accordance with previous assumptions, most of the anticipated operating and financial synergies have been realized.

Most important operating and financial results for 2015

• The total number of active revenue generating units (RGU) was 16.5m, including 77% of contract services (up from 74.9% YoY), which guarantees higher revenue stability in the future as well as greater customer loyalty.
• 5.9m contract customers have over 12.6m contract RGUs, and the ARPU per customer increased to PLN 87.3.
• Already as many as 17% of the Group’s customers use our multiplay offer – smartDOM program:

-        1 million of program customers,

-        3.04m active RGUs contracted by this group of customers.

• Still, thanks to the continuous growth of the LTE network quality and coverage, the number of mobile Internet users grew dynamically – in the contract model by 17% YoY to over 1.6m and in total to nearly 1.83m.
• The Group’s main TV channel Polsat, its thematic channels as well as the entire Polsat Group were the viewership leaders in the commercial group last year, with the following results: 13.2%, 11.4% and 24.6%, respectively.
• TV Polsat Group’s revenue from advertising and sponsoring last year grew nearly twice as fast (8.6%) as the growth for the entire market (4.6%) – reaching PLN 1.04bn, which ensured the Group’s market share in the TV advertising market at the level of 26%.
• The average monthly number of users of IPLA services, the largest Polish web TV, was ca. 3.4m.
  • Very good financial results of the Group:

-        revenue: PLN 9.823bn,

-        EBITDA: PLN 3.685bn,

-        EBITDA margin: 37.5%,

-        Free Cash Flow (FCF) after payment of interest on loans and bonds: PLN 1.305bn,

-        Net debt /EBITDA: 2.84x.

• Realization of synergies as planned:

-        revenue synergies – over 1.1m upsold services in smartDOM program with ARPU at the level of ca. PLN 30,

-        cost synergies – 69 initiated initiatives of the total estimated effect of PLN 850m in the years 2014-2019,

-        financial synergies – total interest savings at the level of PLN 2bn in the years 2014-2019.

“It was another very demanding year due to the dynamically changing market environment and numerous projects carried out within our Group. We have not had a lack of successes in many areas. We consistently accomplished the business goals set for ourselves, among others we observed the growth of the number of contract services, growth of ARPU of contract customers, we acquired over 1 million customers of smartDOM program and the viewership results of the channels from the Polsat Group improved. As announced earlier, we successively realized the assumed operating and financial synergies, which will support the further effective growth of our Group. As the LTE leader on the Polish market, we focused on the regular network roll-out in this technology, thanks to which 97% of Poles are already within the coverage of our LTE Internet”, says Tobias Solorz, President of the Management Board of Cyfrowy Polsat S.A. and Polkomtel Sp. z o.o.

Segment of services provided to individual and business customers

“In 2015 we consistently built our positon on all markets on which we operate. We regularly increased the number of customers in smartDOM program, to reach the assumed goal of 1 million customers at the end of the year. We systematically extended our contract service base, while at the same time focusing on the growth of ARPU. We maintained the leading position on the mobile Internet market. We also observed progressive stabilization of the voice service base, which is driven i.a. by a visible slowdown of the price pressure on the mobile telephony market, which resulted in a first – for nearly three years – growth of the RGUs base of contract mobile telephony by approximately 12 thousand in the fourth quarter,” sums up Tobias Solorz.

Financial results for the segment of services provided to individual and business customers
in Q4 2015.

* Operating costs do not account for depreciation, amortization, impairment and  liquidation

“Growth of the revenue in Q4 has been accomplished mainly thanks to the growth of wholesale revenue and revenue on the sale of equipment. As usual we had the costs under control, as a result of which EBITDA increased by PLN 32m YoY. During the entire year we observed a stable level of revenue and costs for this segment of our operations, and we owe the growth of major balance sheet items mainly to consolidation of the results of the Metelem Group to which Polkomtel belongs”, comments Tomasz Szeląg, Management Board Member, CFO at Cyfrowy Polsat S.A. and Polkomtel Sp. z o.o.

Broadcasting and TV production segment

“Both the Q4 as well as the entire 2015 were very successful for Polsat TV. In both periods, Polsat’s main channel and the entire Polsat Group were viewership leaders in the commercial group which is crucial from a business point of view. This translated into dynamic growth of our advertising revenue, which grew nearly twice as fast as the entire market – at the rate of 10.9% in the last quarter of the year and 8.6% in the entire 2015. In 2016 we expect the growth of the entire market of television advertising and sponsoring at an average single-digit rate”, claims Maciej Stec, Management Board Member of Cyfrowy Polsat S.A. and Telewizja Polsat Sp. z o.o.

¹ NAM, All 16-49, all day, SHR%

² Our estimates based on SMG Poland data (formerly SMG Starlink)

³ SMG Poland, air time and sponsorship

“Balanced planning of the programming offer of our channels and the ability to effectively utilize of the growing viewership results contributed to the 10% growth of revenue and EBITDA of the broadcasting and TV production segment in the fourth quarter last year. We observed a very positive effect of investments into programming of TV4 and TV6, as well as additional sport and film licenses. Furthermore, the dynamic improvement of the EBITDA and EBITDA margin also in the entire 2015 is worth mentioning, which invariably should be credited to the balanced programming and investment policy”, comments Katarzyna Ostap-Tomann, Management Board Member and CFO of Telewizja Polsat Sp. z o.o.

Financial results of the broadcasting and TV production segment in Q4 2015

* Operating costs do not account for depreciation, amortization, impairment and  liquidation

Financial results of Cyfrowy Polsat  Group

Cyfrowy Polsat Group’s financial results for Q4 2015 and the entire 2015

* Operating costs do not account for depreciation, amortization, impairment and  liquidation

“Our Group’s financial performance, both in Q4 and in the entire 2015, exceeded the market consensus. Stable growth revenue and operating cost control resulted in the improvement of EBITDA and growth of EBITDA margin. From a financial point of view, the completion of the process of Group’s refinancing was an important event, thanks to which we not only ensured interest savings in the amount of approximately PLN 400m per year, but also a higher flexibility and safety of operations, which undoubtedly will have a positive impact on future initiatives launched by us. Free cash flows continue to be a strong item in our balance – their annual, adjusted value exceeded PLN 1.3bn, growing by more than PLN100m YoY”, sums up Tomasz Szeląg.

Most important business events in 2015

• In 2015, the application of the largest online television IPLA for devices with Android operating system exceeded 5 million downloads. This makes it one of the most popular Polish applications in Google Play store and the most popular mobile VOD application in Poland.
• Since December 17, 2015, Cyfrowy Polsat has allowed its customers to purchase HBO GO service offering premium television content together with the LTE Internet. HBO GO service is now available without an agreement for television services – already from PLN 20 per month.
• On October 26, 2015 Polkomtel submitted an application for the reservation of frequencies in 2600 MHz band which were the subject of the recently finalized auction dedicated to 800 MHz and 2600 MHz bands.
• On October 12, 2015 during an official gala of one of the most important competitions in the advertising sector – Effie Awards – Polsat Group received an award for the smartDOM program. A silver award in the Telecommunication category for the joint campaign „Saving by adding” was received by Cyfrowy Polsat and Plus.
• On April 13, 2015 the Group made an early prepayment of a part of the term loan of Polkomtel in the amount of PLN 600m.
• As a result of the concluded acquisition agreements, aligned with the Group’s development strategy in the new technologies area, Teleaudio Dwa, the leader in Premium Rate services, and InterPhone Service, the manufacturer of modern, general purpose telecommunication and electronic appliances, have joined Cyfrowy Polsat Capital Group.
• Since March 2015, Plus and Cyfrowy Polsat customers are the first customers in Poland who may use the Internet services in LTE technology on 800 MHz frequency band.
• On October 7, 2015 Cyfrowy Polsat and Plus network reinstated the promotion „second product for half price, third even for PLN 1” under the smartDOM program, offering their customers a broad portfolio of services  – television, LTE Internet, mobile services – at very beneficial prices.
• In connection with switching over to the state-of-the-art MPEG-4 compression system by Cyfrowy Polsat, from October 1, 2015 the platform’s subscribers received better quality of services and as many as 16 additional channels in HD standard, which increased the total number of HD channels available on the platform to over 60!
• On September 25, 2015 the rating agency Standard & Poor's Rating Services increased the corporate ratings for the companies belonging to the Group to the level of BB+.
• On September 22, 2015 Cyfrowy Polsat Group concluded with a consortium of Polish and foreign financial institutions a Senior Facilities Agreement covering a term facility in the amount up to PLN 11.5bn and a revolving facility in the amount of up to PLN 1bn, which – together with the corporate unsecured series A bearer bonds issued in July 2015 of the total nominal value of PLN 1bn – will be used to refinance the entire existing debt of the Group.
• On September 3, 2015 Plus, as the first mobile operator in Poland, offered its customers the possibility of purchasing access to the HBO GO service along with the subscription for a mobile phone with the Internet service or with the LTE Internet subscription.
• In September 2015, Plus network, as the first mobile operator on the market, introduced for tests a novelty solution - Wi-Fi Calling - ensuring a possibility of making voice calls within the coverage of Wi-Fi network, when making a call in the mobile network is difficult. Unlike popular instant messaging services, the use of Wi-Fi Calling enables users to make calls from their own handsets in the traditional way – using their own mobile phone number, dialer or contacts.
• In September Polsat TV launched its own, state-of-the-art production center designed for the production of its own television shows. The facility is located at Łubinowa street in Warsaw on the premises of Cyfrowy Polsat. The building with the cubic capacity of 22,000 m³ includes a sound stage of an area exceeding 1200 m², spacious wardrobes, make-up rooms, as well as the space to accommodate an audience of several hundred.
• In September 2015, Plus network was the first telecommunication operator in Poland to offer its customers a telemedicine service Ja+Health – medical consultations available 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, contact with a nurse and midwife, information about emergency medical services and medical consultations.
• On July 29, 2015 the Group made an early prepayment of a part of the term loan of Cyfrowy Polsat in the amount of PLN 1bn.
• In April 2015 Plus introduced the HD Voice technology for all its customers on the entire territory of Poland. Thanks to HD Voice, Plus customers can enjoy better quality of connections and higher comfort of phone calls.