KT announced on the 8th that for the third quarter of this year, it recorded a consolidated revenue of 6,654.6 billion won and an operating profit of 464.1 billion won. Revenue decreased by 0.6%, while operating profit increased by 44.2%. During the same period, net income rose by 32.9% to 383.2 billion won.
The decrease in KT Group’s consolidated revenue was slightly due to the impact of content subsidiaries compared to the same period last year. However, standalone revenue, excluding group companies, increased by 2%. Standalone service revenue reached 4,069 billion won, marking growth of 1.2% compared to the same period last year and 0.5% from the previous quarter, surpassing 4 trillion won for three consecutive quarters. Operating profit increased due to early reflection of costs related to wage negotiations in the second quarter. Standalone operating profit also rose by 75.1% to 338.9 billion won.
In the wireless sector, the launch of flagship devices in the third quarter resulted in 76% of all handset subscribers using 5G services. Wireless service revenue grew by 2% year-on-year due to the expansion of the roaming business and the growth of budget phones (MVNO). KT is expanding its non-face-to-face distribution channels to enhance profitability, with online-only plans, such as the “Yogo Season 2” Direct Plan launched in August, leading to increased wireless sales in these channels.
The wireline business saw a 1.3% decline in revenue from the same period last year. The media business maintained a net increase in Internet TV (IPTV) subscribers, but sales decreased by 1.2% year-on-year due to a drop in pay-per-view (PPV) purchases and advertising revenue. KT plans to focus on recovery in media business revenue by launching an on-device AI set-top box that automatically optimizes image quality and sound according to the environment. High-speed internet achieved around 9.93 million maintaining subscribers, and with the increased proportion of 1G speed subscribers among gigabit internet users, revenue rose by 0.4% from the same period last year.
Enterprise services revenue grew by 2.5% year-on-year, driven by growth in dedicated lines and AI Contact Center (AICC) businesses. With steady growth in dedicated lines, AICC continued double-digit sales growth, influenced by A’Cen Cloud, a subscription-based product. KT aims to strengthen profitability by restructuring less profitable businesses to secure sustainable growth momentum.
KT Group continued steady performance improvement in core business portfolios such as finance, real estate, and digital transformation (DX). BC Card saw an increase in operating profit year-on-year, driven by the growth of its own card business and efforts to rebalance the financial sector.
K-Bank surpassed 12 million customers in the third quarter. Deposits grew by 27.4% year-on-year to 22 trillion won, and loans increased by 26.4% to 16.2 trillion won. KT Estate saw sales growth of 3.6% year-on-year due to balanced growth in rental income from offices and hotels. In particular, sales in the hotel sector steadily increased due to package sales during the summer vacation period, driving KT Estate’s growth.
KT’s content subsidiaries saw a decline in revenue compared to the previous year due to the contraction of the content market, but demonstrated potential for growth as the shows “Your Honor” and “To My Harry” aired in the third quarter garnered consecutive hits.
KT Cloud’s revenue grew by 6.8% year-on-year, driven by the growth of major business divisions and an expanding customer base. The Internet Data Center (IDC) business continued its growth trajectory, with revenue generated from Design-Build-Operate (DBO) projects, such as the Gasan DC due for completion next year. The cloud business is recruiting new customers.
KT is accelerating innovation across various sectors such as capabilities, business, and workforce structures to transform into an AICT company. In September, it intensified its strategic partnership with Microsoft (MS) to enhance competitiveness in AI, cloud, and IT fields, laying the foundation for new advances. On the 5th, KT disclosed its plan to enhance corporate value, setting a target for a return on equity (ROE) of 9-10% by 2028, and is actively working to increase its corporate value.
KT CFO Jang Min stated, “KT Group will continue to grow as an AICT company based on the strategic partnership with MS,” adding, “We will also successfully implement our recently announced plan to enhance corporate value to elevate KT’s corporate value to a new level.”