United Internet AG's 2024 Fiscal Year Affected by Network Roll-out Challenges

United Internet AG's preliminary results for the fiscal year 2024 confirm sales growth but reveal that earnings were unexpectedly impacted by higher expenses due to the roll-out of the 1&1 mobile network. Despite a sales increase of 1.9% to EUR 6.329 billion, earnings faced challenges due to temporary network outages and subsequent customer churn.

The company added 590,000 new fee-based customer contracts, driving sustainable growth. However, the transition of existing customers to the new network faced delays, limiting expected savings. Preliminary EBITDA reached EUR 1,294.0 million, missing the projected EUR 1.38 billion, reflecting increased expenses for network development.

Concluding negotiations with the expansion partner responsible for the network issues is expected to take time, leaving the timeline for resolution uncertain.