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Vodafone New Zealand's continued solid growth will see its customer base exceed two million this year, says Managing Director Russell Stanners.

Steady growth in customer numbers and market share, resulting in solid revenue growth, were highlights of Vodafone's performance over the 2004-2005 financial year, Stanners said today.

Innovation in mobile solutions and ongoing commitment to innovation in New Zealand meant that Vodafone was well-placed for future growth, he said.

During the 12 months to 31 March 2005, Vodafone gained a net 284,187 customers, to lift its customer base to 1,891,386. Vodafone's share of the New Zealand mobile market now stands at 55.4%, compared with 54.6% for the previous equivalent period.

"As New Zealand's leading mobile player, we're really happy with our growth rates given the reasonable level of maturity in the market - 23% cumulative annual growth in revenue over the past four years is a figure we can be very pleased with," Stanners said.

"We've been seeking sustainable revenue growth and have chased the right performance drivers to achieve this."

Vodafone attributes its sustained market leadership - despite the mobile penetration rate of more than 80% in New Zealand - to developing innovative products and services which allow customers to derive more value from their mobiles.

"Our decision to spend hundreds of millions of dollars upgrading our network to deliver 3G-enabled products and services to our customers is a case in point. Our customers are going to be blown away by what's coming this year... these new products and services will have a huge impact on the way they are entertained ,informed, and communicate with family, friends and colleagues."

Stanners said the array of tailored and value-adding deals offered by Vodafone over the past 12 months had made richer mobile experiences even more accessible to New Zealand customers.

"Motormouth continues to be hugely popular with consumers, and before Christmas we gave our Prepay customers an early gift with our great-value double-up offer. Talkzonezero is helping to break down the barriers to businesses adopting a fully mobile environment, particularly in the small business market. We also brought to New Zealand products and services like Push to Talk, which will improve productivity across a wide range of industries."

Stanners said the significant growth in data usage, driven by increases in txt, pxt, Vodafone live!, the BlackberryTM Handheld Device and Mobile Connect Card, was particularly pleasing. The increasing number of internet and email-ready handsets being introduced to the market by Vodafone would further fuel this growth.

The introduction of new value-based services such as talkzonezero and customer rewards like Prepay double-up had contributed to an overall reduction of average revenue per user (ARPU) during the financial year, Stanners said.

Over the past 12 months, total (blended) average revenue per user (ARPU) reduced NZD39 to NZD633. Prepay ARPU went from NZD346 to NZD333, while On Account ARPU, which stood at NZD1843 a year ago, is now NZD1760.

The 5.8% year-on-year reduction in overall ARPU was largely driven by aggressive pricing competition in New Zealand and the acquisition by Vodafone of many customers - both in the consumer and business markets - who tended to be less intensive mobile users.

Stanners said the company's steady growth meant Vodafone could continue to invest in infrastructure in New Zealand, and in new products and services that were up with the best in the world.

"Vodafone is all about offering our customers choice, value for money and innovative products and services. We're pleased with the progress we've made over the last year."