BigAir Makes (Relatively) Big Step Forward

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By Rudi Filapek-Vandyck

Fledgling wireless telecom service provider BigAir (BGL) continues to make good progress in achieving its target of 10,000 customers by early 2007. The company has signed an agreement to purchase 800 customers from T3 Wireless, a subsidiary of Pacific Internet.

In addition, T3 Wireless will assist with the migration of its existing iBurst retail channel distribution agreements across to BigAir.

According to the company’s statement, the acquisition will add in excess of $600,000 to BigAir’s annual revenues.

Last time FN Arena spoke with BigAir CEO Jason Ashton he preferred to remain on the conservative side with projected ARPU (average return per user) for the first year. This cautiousness seems no longer present with the company now announcing the customers it is acquiring are mostly professional users with "higher than average ARPU" and "higher than average margins". As one would expect, the transaction is forecast to have a positive impact on BigAir’s margin developments.

The company likes to refer to research and advisory firm, IDC, which predicts the total Australian market for wireless broadband will exceed 386,000 subscribers and $243m by 2009. The wireless market’s growth rate should be almost three times that of the overall broadband market.

BigAir’s share price was up 12.50% (2 cents) at $0.18 in low volume this morning.

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