Simobil to be rebranded as A1
The move is a result of what Simobil chairman Dejan Turk called a shift in Simobil's strategic position and changes in the extremely dynamic environment.Rebranding is a generally accepted business practice aimed at reinforcing the position in the market and a common strategic activity in the global area of telecommunication, argued Turk.
"The adoption of the new brand name will enable us to make use of A1's many advantages and benefits. This will further strengthen our position on the Slovenian market," he added.
Currently, Simobil has a 30.5% share on the Slovenian market, making it Slovenia's second biggest mobile services provider, show data from the Agency for Communication Networks and Services (AKOS) for the second quarter of the year.
It is also the second biggest provider of mobile broadband services, as it held a 29.3% market share at the end of the second quarter.
It had the third biggest market share in IP television, standing at 15.7%. It was, meanwhile, fourth in IP telephony with a 9.6% market share and in fixed broadband with a 12.2% market share.
In this year's third quarter, Simobil generated EUR 55m in revenue, up 0.5% year-on-year, and made EUR 16.1m in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, up 0.8% from the same period last year.
Simobil has been part of the Telekom Austria group since 2001. Telekom Austria is, meanwhile, controlled by the Mexican telecommunications giant America Movil.
Telekom Austria is present in several other markets in the region: Austria, Bulgaria, Belarus, Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia and Macedonia.