Vodafone Spain is gaining more fiber customers than it has lost in recent months. This is good news for the operator, whose numbers in its fixed Internet service had been falling since November 2017. Its growth practically coincides with the entry of Zegona and with the arrival of José Miguel García as CEO of the company.
The latest data from the National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) are favorable for Vodafone, with clear growth in its fiber contracting. The company had been decreasing the number of its Internet customers for almost seven years. But the months of June, July and August 2024 have reflected an improvement.
When Zegona’s acquisition of Vodafone took place in May, the operator had 2,804 million fixed broadband subscribers (fiber optics and HFC). As the months have passed, it has gained 11,000 new customers, so it now has 2.815 million.
This increase, although it may seem small, is good news for Vodafone, which had accumulated a decreasing trend since November 2017. The operator has carried out various strategies that have not been successful, but those of Zegona and its new CEO, José Miguel García, make Vodafone take a step forward again.
Vodafone still does not reach the numbers of seven years ago
Although Vodafone is waking up from its seven-year slumber, it is still far from reaching the numbers of November 2017. Around that time, the operator registered its maximum volume of fixed broadband customers in Spain, with 3,356 million contracts in course, according to the analyzes of the CNMC.
The share at that time was 23.5%, which was still lower than most competing brands, but it was growing quarterly. In fact, in the second quarter, up to 57,000 customers had been added compared to the numbers from the first three months of 2017. But, to put it in context, Telefónica had 41.2% and Orange had 27.7%. The rivals that it did surpass with its share were MásMóvil, which had 3.3%, and the rest of the operators that were represented in a single percentage of 0.04% in total.
The situation in 2024 is far from what it was in its day. MásMóvil surpassed the number of fixed Internet customers with the Orange joint venture (MásOrange), which was formalized this year. In addition, Digi has made an appearance and has become another operator with great growth in the Spanish telecommunications market.
Currently, Vodafone’s increase share is 15.9%, if we take into account the closing data for August 2024 from the CNMC. For its part, MásOrange takes the cake with 40.7% since its merger and Telefónica holds 33.5%. The rest of the operators represent 9.9%, with Digi at the top of that list.
That Vodafone has fewer fiber customers now than at the end of 2017 means that revenue has been reduced. The closing of the first fiscal semester 2017-2018 translated into 2,512 million euros for the red operator. Meanwhile, the entire fiscal year of 2023-2024 was 3,846 million euros.
With the purchase of Vodafone by Zegona, it seems that the operator is finally managing to turn around. The strategy they are following has made it so. In June, they began a new stage that consisted of “offering what customers really ask of us and satisfaction.” Among the changes is the elimination of the time limitation on discounts on plans for individuals and the self-employed and improvements in customer service.
