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    Joshua Mills

    Senior Analyst at BNP Paribas Exane

    Joshua Mills is a Senior Analyst at BNP Paribas Exane specializing in European telecommunications and media equities, regularly covering leading companies such as Swisscom, Tele2, Liberty Global, United Internet, and KPN. His research and recommendations have produced a 73% rate of profitable calls with an average return of 9.7% per transaction, and he is recognized for particularly successful stock picks such as a +37.1% return on T-Mobile US between 2020 and 2021. Mills began his analyst career before joining BNP Paribas Exane and now plays a leading role in the firm's telecom sector coverage across major European markets. He holds professional securities licenses, including FINRA registration, underpinning his credentials as a trusted equity research specialist in the industry.

    Joshua Mills's questions to TELEFONICA S A (TEF) leadership

    Joshua Mills's questions to TELEFONICA S A (TEF) leadership • Q2 2025

    Question

    Joshua Mills from BNP Paribas asked for high-level thoughts on the tech and cybersecurity opportunity, questioning what makes it different now and what strengths Telefónica possesses. He also asked what would drive the guided revenue acceleration for Virgin Media O2 in the second half of 2025.

    Answer

    Chairman & CEO Marc Murtra Millar highlighted Europe's push for 'strategic autonomy' and increased defense spending as key market changes for cybersecurity, noting Telefónica's strength in integration. Virgin Media O2 CEO Lutz Schüler explained that while the UK fixed market faces promotional pressure, he expects H2 revenue growth to be driven by a strong B2B deal funnel.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to VODAFONE GROUP PUBLIC LTD (VOD) leadership

    Joshua Mills's questions to VODAFONE GROUP PUBLIC LTD (VOD) leadership • Q1 2026

    Question

    Joshua Mills from BNP Paribas Exane asked how important it is to grow the German broadband subscriber base now that it's declining, and inquired about the potential to introduce back-book price increases for value creation.

    Answer

    Group CEO Margherita Della Valle stated that in a stable market, the target is to maintain a stable broadband base, with value creation coming from front-book pricing, upselling, and churn reduction. Regarding back-book price hikes, she acknowledged it's something Vodafone has done in the past and remains a consideration, but it's too early to specify what shape any future interventions might take.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to TELENOR (TELNY) leadership

    Joshua Mills's questions to TELENOR (TELNY) leadership • Q1 2025

    Question

    Joshua Mills requested more insight into the defense contracts mentioned, including their potential revenue and margin contribution, and whether Telenor competes against other telcos or specialized defense players for this business.

    Answer

    CEO Benedicte Fasmer stated it was premature to quantify the financial impact but highlighted a significant existing relationship with the Norwegian armed forces. CFO Torbjorn Wist added that the KNL subsidiary is a small but high-margin, exciting area, with revenues tripling to NOK 60 million last year, seeing significant potential given the current geopolitical climate.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to TELENOR (TELNY) leadership • Q4 2024

    Question

    Joshua Mills asked for color on the service revenue slowdown in Sweden during Q4, the outlook for 2025, and the current pricing environment.

    Answer

    CFO Torbjorn Wist attributed the Q4 slowdown in Sweden to tough year-over-year comparisons and promotional activity, stating it was not representative of the underlying trend. He highlighted strong postpaid net additions as a positive sign. Head of IR Frank Maaø clarified that adjusting for one-offs, underlying Nordic service revenue growth was closer to 3% in the quarter.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to Liberty Global (LBTYA) leadership

    Joshua Mills's questions to Liberty Global (LBTYA) leadership • Q1 2025

    Question

    Joshua Mills from BNP Paribas asked for an update on conversations with partner Telefonica regarding VMO2's strategy and whether Liberty Global would consider deals with AltNets in the Netherlands despite its DOCSIS 4 plan.

    Answer

    Executive Chairman Michael Fries stated that he respects Telefonica's new leadership needing time for a strategic review, with updates expected in H2. He stressed that VMO2 remains opportunistic in the U.K. market. For the Netherlands, he confirmed DOCSIS 4 is the core plan but that the company will 'always remain opportunistic' regarding other network strategies that could create value.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to Liberty Global (LBTYA) leadership • Q3 2024

    Question

    Joshua Mills of BNP Paribas questioned Stephen van Rooyen on the strategy for VodafoneZiggo, asking what is needed to stabilize its subscriber base and how the company can drive value as price increases moderate.

    Answer

    An executive, presumably Stephen van Rooyen, stated his short-term focus is on managing churn in a promotion-driven market. He expressed confidence in the DOCSIS network roadmap, the value of the broader portfolio including UEFA rights and the TV platform, and using the Hollandsnieuwe flanker brand to compete on price.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to Liberty Global (LBTYA) leadership • Q2 2024

    Question

    Joshua Mills asked about the cable versus fiber strategy, inquiring about DOCSIS 4.0 testing, the benefits of speed upgrades in Switzerland, and if wholesaling on cable in Belgium could serve as a model for other markets.

    Answer

    Executive Michael Fries explained that the network strategy is market-specific. In the U.K., the similar cost of DOCSIS 4.0 and fiber upgrades—combined with a wholesale market shifting to fiber—makes a full-fiber strategy logical. In contrast, Belgium has a history of successful HFC wholesaling. In Switzerland, the company employs a flexible, multi-technology approach using its 2.5-gig HFC network, third-party fiber, and its own fiber builds to serve customers most effectively.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to Liberty Global (LBTYA) leadership • Q1 2024

    Question

    Joshua Mills of BNP Paribas Exane inquired about VodafoneZiggo's Net Promoter Scores (NPS) in the Netherlands, the source of fiber overbuild competition, and the specific impact of a billing system migration on VMO2's postpaid subscriber losses in the U.K.

    Answer

    Ritchy Drost, CFO of VodafoneZiggo, confirmed that NPS scores are gradually increasing for all brands, leading to positive scores. He attributed market competition primarily to aggressive pricing from players like Odido and Delta. For the U.K., Lutz Schüler, CEO of VMO2, acknowledged the postpaid net add weakness was partly due to a completed CRM system migration but did not disclose a specific number. Michael Fries, CEO of Liberty Global, added that he views the Q1 result as a 'blip' given consistent mobile contract growth since the JV's formation.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to KKPNY leadership

    Joshua Mills's questions to KKPNY leadership • Q1 2025

    Question

    Asked what underpins the confidence in B2B's resilience compared to the past, requested a breakdown of growth expectations for B2B sub-segments, and inquired about the dynamics of wholesale net adds.

    Answer

    The confidence in B2B resilience stems from a decade-long cleanup and migration to IP-based services, which has resulted in a clean, stable, and decently-priced customer base. This process is largely complete for SME and well advanced for LCE. In wholesale, the competitive intensity is stable, and there is an increasing willingness from partners to collaborate with KPN for growth, although reported numbers can be slightly distorted by customer shifts between segments.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to KKPNY leadership • Q4 2024

    Question

    Asked for clarification on why CapEx is running slightly higher than CMD guidance and whether it's accelerating fiber rollout. Also inquired about the customer base mix shift between the main KPN brand and sub-brands like Youfone and its impact on ARPU.

    Answer

    The higher CapEx of about €50 million is due to wage inflation in the fiber construction sector, not an accelerated rollout. Regarding brand mix, Youfone is successfully targeting the no-frills segment, complementing the premium KPN brand. The executive estimated that sub-brands (Youfone and Simyo) might account for 25% to 1/3 of the mobile base.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to KKPNY leadership • Q2 2024

    Question

    Requested the underlying wholesale growth rates for broadband and mobile adjusted for Youfone. He also questioned why the wholesale performance was below the CMD guidance for 2024 and asked if wholesale broadband net adds could return to stability within the year.

    Answer

    Ex-Youfone, wholesale service revenue growth was +3% for broadband and -2.8% for mobile. The deviation from CMD guidance is due to higher-than-expected broadband competition, though this is offset by better-than-planned performance in consumer and business segments. A small decline in wholesale broadband net adds is still expected in Q3, with a conservative outlook for a return to stability.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to KKPNY leadership • Q1 2024

    Question

    Asked if the 1-1.5% revenue growth target for the wholesale business is still valid and inquired about the recent performance of the newly acquired Youfone business, including net adds and historical growth.

    Answer

    The wholesale revenue growth target is actually 1.5-2% after absorbing regulatory headwinds, with an assumption of flattish to small net add growth. Youfone has shown strong mobile net add growth but flattish broadband performance, which KPN expects to improve. More detailed disclosures on Youfone will be provided in Q2.

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    Joshua Mills's questions to ORANGE (FNCTF) leadership

    Joshua Mills's questions to ORANGE (FNCTF) leadership • Q1 2025

    Question

    Joshua Mills asked for more color on the cost-cutting plan, specifically the phasing of EBITDAaL benefits from the new union agreement and whether other cost-saving opportunities beyond headcount are being explored.

    Answer

    CEO Christel Heydemann explained that the financial impact from the new senior part-time agreement will begin in H2 2025 but will be more significant starting next year. She confirmed the company is confident the plan will execute as forecasted. Beyond this, she highlighted ongoing initiatives in procurement, AI, and general operational efficiency, but stated there are no further headcount-related plans in France as the current scheme is sufficient.

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