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SCMP Reporter

I-Cable Communications said net profit rose 83 per cent on a 91 per cent fall in tax expense.

Net profit rose to HK$116.37 million. Group revenue dropped 7 per cent to HK$1.18  billion.

I-Cable  said it had a recent net gain in  customers  even as the company's exclusive rights to carry English Premier League football matches expired in May,  chairman Stephen Ng Tin-hoi said yesterday.

I-Cable said  subscriber levels rose  8 per cent in the first half to 830,000 users, up from 770,000 a year earlier.

However,  pay-television revenue  was down 14 per cent to HK$827.49 million.

Mr Ng said the pay-television  business was still picking up  new subscribers despite the expiry of the football rights.

PCCW's Now TV  will start its exclusive three-year contract to broadcast matches  of the English Premier League this weekend.

'Our churn rate after the league  season finished in May, which measured the number of customers cancelling the service, was 20 per cent lower than  in the same period of 2005. We did not use last year's  figure for comparison due to  the World Cup football tournament in  the same period last year,'  Mr Ng said.

I-Cable also denied claims by the public that the company's congested customer hotline made it difficult  to cancel  subscriptions.

'We have added 200 staff  at our call centre and more than  90 per cent of calls can be connected now, which was up from only 40 per cent earlier this year,' Mr Ng said.

The company  diversified its content line-up to attract subscribers after losing the league  rights. Mr Ng said about  67 per cent of i-Cable's subscribers watched the company's news, entertainment and movie channels, up from 56 per cent last year. Sports channels attracted only 13 per cent of viewers, down from 20 per cent a year earlier.

Mr Ng said without the football league expenses, the company expected to record a slight decrease in programming costs this year.  Programming costs fell 6 per cent in the first half this year to HK$491.73 million.

The decrease in revenue from pay-television  services was  due to the launch of a low monthly tariff package to attract non-sports fans.

Operating profit increased to HK$100 million from HK$98 million a year earlier as operating expenses fell 17 per cent in the reported period.

I-Cable earlier this week said  it had won  the exclusive right to carry the 2012 London Olympic Games in Hong Kong. Mr Ng said the company had promised the International Olympic Committee to provide  the broadest coverage for the games.

'I-Cable will partner with more than one broadcaster and media for the broadcasting arrangement. We believe that there will be more free television  channels in Hong Kong due to the adoption of  digital terrestrial  television services by the end of 2007,'  Mr Ng said.

The  internet and multimedia division  recorded operating profit of HK$86.24 million in the reporting period, up from HK$68.05 million a year earlier. Revenue remained flat at HK$294.85 million.

Earnings per share rose 83 per cent to 5.7 HK cents. The company maintained its interim dividend at 3.5 HK cents.



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Sharp fall in tax expense boosts i-Cable profit 83pc