company also wrote off assets worth £800 million
― almost €1 billion.
The largest alternative providers will also report
losses for 2010. Despite the increase in their
turnover ―by approximately 10% to 15%― both
Forthnet, and Hellas online, continue to sustain
losses owing to increased amortization. These
companies are also fraught with huge debts,
which in a period of scarce liquidity in the Greek
market are putting them under pressure from
creditors.
Everything suggests that in 2010 the Greek tele-
com services market will drop by 10% or more.
This market, which in 2009 stood at €7.8 billion, is
now estimated at €7.0 billion and there are no
signs of recovery on the horizon. On the contrary,
the pressure exerted on consumers by the aus-
terity measures implemented by the government,
as well as the lack of liquidity in the market, are
expected to put a further squeeze on the
providers’ sales and revenues. “In 2011”, claimed
the company, upon releasing the results for the
previous year, “OTE management expects that its
revenues will once again be impacted by
unfavourable economic conditions in all countries
in which it operates and by the regulatory frame-
work in Greece. Management will intensify efforts
aimed at containing revenue erosion, preserving
its profitability and cash flow generation, and
accelerating the transformation of its organiza-
tion.” In other words, the issue is whether the drop
in revenues and profits in the telecoms sector will
accelerate or not.
The telecommunications
equipment market
The deterioration of the telecommunication serv-
ice providers’ fundamentals is inescapably drag-
ging down the fundamentals of telecommunica-
tions equipment suppliers. The latter are seeing a
Trade with Greece
125
