Eutelsat Q3: Video downturn
May 11, 2023
By Chris Forrester
Eutelsat continues to suffer a downturn in its Broadcast division revenues. Its Q3 numbers, released on May 11th, reported an overall decline in revenues of 7 per cent with its Broadcast division falling back (y-o-y) of 9.3 per cent as reported. Government Services also fell back 9.3 per cent (and a worrying 13.4 per cent in “like for like” revenue.
However, there was some upside, with Fixed Broadband rising 9.4 per cent and Mobile Connectivity up 30 per cent.
The fluctuations translated into overall Q3 revenues of €272 million, down 7 per cent y-o-y and 3.7 per cent q-o-q. Its Nine month Operating Verticals revenues -5.1 per cent y-o-y, in line with expectations; and “all financial objectives confirmed” said Eutelsat.
Third Quarter Broadcast revenues amounted to €157 million, down 10.6% year-on-year. The slight deterioration compared to Q2 reflected the full effect of the non-renewal of the Digitürk contract, as well as lower revenues in Europe. It was also underpinned by the effect of sanctions against certain Russian and Iranian channels which mainly impact the Second Half of FY 2022-23.
On the commercial front, Eutelsat was selected by certain Latin American customers for broadcast services in Mexico and Brazil, leveraging the unparalleled coverage of the EUTELSAT 65A, 117WA and 117WB satellites over the region. Revenues in the Fourth Quarter are expected to slightly decrease compared to the Third Quarter on the back of lower volumes in Europe
Eutelsat also reported that the OneWeb Gen-1 constellation was on track for Global Coverage, supporting positive commercial ramp-up. Eutelsat’s merger transaction with OneWeb was on track to close by Q3 2023. The development of its Gen-2 craft is set to begin in 2024, unlocking significant additional value at an optimized cost.
Eutelsat’s contracted backlog is now valued at €3.5 billion, and down from €4 billion a year ago.