On the European level and at the French level, Iliad, Free’s parent company, had a flurry of years in 2022, with broad positive signals that make the operator the European leader in terms of growth.
Confirming the success of its Odyssey 2024 plan, with several objectives sometimes achieved two years in advance, the Iliad group saw its turnover jump 6.9% in France last year (+10 .3% on all of its activities in Europe), to 7.8 billion euros (8.4 billion euros in total), according to the company’s annual results unveiled on Thursday, March 16. Regarding its subscriber base, Free can also wear a broad smile.
Free does better than its competitors in 2022
Over the past ten years, Free has rarely posted such good commercial performance. In 2022, the operator managed to attract 607,000 new mobile subscribers (931,000 arrivals, 325,000 departures), ending the year as number one in recruiting new subscribers in France, for all landlines and mobiles combined.
In recent months, all operators have multiplied announcements of increases in mobile plans. All, with the exception of Free, which has promised not to increase its prices at least for the next five years, which may have prompted some consumers to join the operator created by Xavier Niel, in an inflationary context.
As of December 31, 2022, Free had more than 14.2 million mobile subscribers, compared to 13.6 million at the end of the previous year. The company continues to approach the famous 15 million mark.
Iliad, sixth European operator in number of subscribers
On the fixed line, Free recruited 255,000 new net subscribers (that is to say after determining the ratio of departures/arrivals). Fiber, which became the majority in its fixed subscriber base at the end of 2021, is equipping more and more customers, with an adoption rate that has gained 10 points over one year, to reach 64.9% at December 31, 2022. This means that of Free’s 7.2 million broadband and very high-speed subscribers, 4.7 million benefit from an optical fiber offer.
These recruitments make the Iliad group the sixth largest European operator in terms of the number of subscribers for mobiles and landlines: 21.4 million in France, 9.7 million in Italy and 14.8 million in Poland.
” The 2022 results reflect a triple dynamic of investment, innovation and conquest. In a context of hyperinflation and fierce competition, our economic results are very solid in our 3 countries. Iliad is the European group with the strongest growth momentum and these good results should encourage us to continue to reinvent ourselves and to always imagine the future. “, reacted the general manager of the group, Thomas Reynaud.
The operator should, in the coming weeks or months, unveil its next innovation with the expected release of its new Freebox, the V9, which the operator has started to teaser.
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