Virgin Media expecting 'flat' subscriber growth

Following its first quarter results early last month, Virgin Media has issued a 'revised guidance' notice, stating it expects subscriber growth to be "flat" in the second quarter.

The cable company's first quarter results, announced on May 9, forecast negative TV subscriber growth due to the withdrawal of Sky's basic channels from the Virgin Media TV platform.

The statement said: " This is due in significant part to the wide ranging mitigating actions we have taken. We have also benefited from reinvigorated communications and marketing, growing customer recognition of the value of our video-on-demand content and the inherent appeal of the new Virgin Media brand."

"We expect that a series of new and highly competitive consumer propositions exploiting Virgin Media's unique quad-play capability will help to drive new fixed line telephony and overall subscriber additions. As a result, while we continue to anticipate negative telephony and overall net additions in the second quarter, we expect a return to subscriber growth in the second half of the year, " the statement concluded.