SoftBank, a prominent Japanese telecommunications operator, has disclosed its financial results for the nine months ended December 31, 2023. The company reported a decline in capital expenditures (capex) along with notable revenue increases across its various segments.
Capital investment for the period was 463.5 billion yen, a decrease of 77.1 billion yen from the same period last year. This reduction was primarily due to lower investments related to the completion of our 5G coverage deployment initiatives.
Despite the decline in capital investment, SoftBank’s revenue increased significantly, increasing by 166.1 billion yen (3.8%) from the previous year to 4,511.6 billion yen. This surge in revenue is due to several key factors across various segments.
Financial segment: Sales revenue will increase by 83.3 billion yen due to the consolidation of PayPay Corporation from October 2022.
Distribution business: Sales of ICT (information and communication technology) products and subscription services remained strong, resulting in a significant increase in sales of 36.1 billion yen.
Media/EC segment: Sales increased by 29.9 billion yen due to increased sales of account advertising and search-linked advertising.
Enterprise segment: Sales in this segment increased by 25.5 billion yen due to increased demand for digitalization solutions.
However, sales in the consumer sector decreased slightly by 5.9 billion yen (0.3%) year on year to 2,121.8 billion yen. This decline was primarily due to lower revenues from electricity and mobile services, partially offset by higher sales of goods and other revenues.
Specifically, mobile sales in the consumer sector decreased by 3.8 billion yen compared to the same period last year. SoftBank said in its earnings report that this decline was moderated compared to the previous fiscal year, mainly due to a reduced impact from mobile service price cuts in spring 2021 and an increase in the number of smartphone subscribers.
In particular, broadband revenue increased by 4.7 billion yen (1.6%) compared to the same period last year due to an increase in the number of subscribers to the fiber optic service “SoftBank Hikari.”
Enterprise segment sales increased by 25.5 billion yen (4.6%) year on year to 576.4 billion yen. This growth was driven by increased mobile revenue, business solutions, and other revenue sources.
SoftBank’s performance highlights the company’s resilience in a challenging market environment, with strategic initiatives and segment diversification contributing to overall revenue growth despite segment-specific challenges.
