T-Online, Europe's largest internet service provider, rang up a loss last year owing to start-up losses in its foreign businesses and the introduction of flat-rate tariffs during the latter part of the year, the Internet arm of Deutsche Telekom said today.
T-Online said in a statement that it had made a loss before tax, interest, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of euro 125 million (£118 million dollars) in 2000, compared with a profit of euro 17.6 million in 1999.
Including the contribution to earnings from the flotation of comdirect, in which T-Online holds a stake, the EBITDA loss stood at euro 85.8 million, the company added.
Nevertheless, on the revenue side, T-Online insisted that 2000 had been a success, with total revenues jumping 86.1 per cent to 797.2 million euros and the total number of subscribers up by 70 per cent at 7.94 million.
Investors appeared to be satisfied with the figures, which were not so bad as some people had expected, and T-Online shares rose sharply on the Frankfurt stock exchange.
In the first half hour of trading today, T-Online shares topped an intraday high of euro 16.50, a gain of one euro or 6.5 per cent from the closing price yesterday.
AFP