Head Offices: Telecommunications Street
P.O.Box 24929, CY-1396 Nicosia, Cyprus
Telephone: +357 2 701520, Τelefax: +357 2 701185
e-mail: pr@cyta.cytanet.com.cy

 
Press Release: 96/2000

Presentation of the 1999 Annual Report

“I very humbly want to wish that an objective and impartial judge will reach the conclusion that the period between 1 January 1999 to the end of June 2000 which is under scrutiny was probably the best period in the 40-year history of our organization.

“Yes, today we are flying high!  And we can definitely fly even  higher!!!  So, don’t clip our wings.  We have an immense horizon in front of us . . .  Give us what we need and we will surprise you!!!”

With this remark, CYTA’s Chairman Mr Michalakis Zivanaris wrapped up the Presentation of the 1999 Annual Report of our Organization on 11 July 2000 at the Hilton Hotel and called on all the relevant institutions to contribute toward the fulfillment of CYTA’s dream:

“turning CYTA into the leading competitive business enterprise in Cyprus”.

Present at the ceremony were party leaders and representatives, Finance Minister Mr Takis Clerides, Minister of Communications and Works Mr Averof Neophytou, MPs, senior officials from the public and private sectors, various other personalities, and representatives of the media.

Reporting on the work that has been done, the CYTA Chairman referred to the revolutionary developments in electronic communications and to the decisive role CYTA has played and continues to play in the development of Cypriot society and the island’s economy.  He also noted once again the dangers emanating from the delay in adopting drastic decisions on the future of telecommunications and on that of CYTA itself.  Placing special emphasis on the message conveyed by the 1999 Annual Report that the Organization has been able, through continuous and intensive efforts, to “fly high”, and also on the controversial issue of the liberalization of telecommunications, Mr Zivanaris stressed:

“CYTA believes in free competition as long as it is always on the basis of fair, transparent, and healthy rules”.  He went on to express CYTA’s conviction that “. . . it will be a crime against the people, its owners, if by wrong and hasty actions the value of the organization is harmed and it is condemned to deferiorate . . .

Telecommunications in Cyprus are as goods as anywhere.  Therefore, immature action under the pretext of accelerating its liberalization is neither demanded nor dictated . . .

On the contrary, with a little bit of patience and calm dialogue and by utilizing the experiences of others, we can avoid their mistakes and achieve a smooth transition into the new order of things.

Of course, as long as it is a given fact that we will not join the EU on 1 January 2003, there is no commitment to accelerate liberalization which can be implemented later on so that the Organization will be granted the opportunity to prepare itself well for the competition.

Therefore, only the privatization of our Organization and the creation of an independent regulatory authority should be accelerated once the Organization has made the necessary preparation and the regulatory authority is staffed and prepares the necessary regulation and studies.  Only then should liberalization begin”.

Going on to a brief evaluation of CYTA’s performance in 1999, Mr Zivanaris mentioned, among other things that this year, too, CYTA had continued upgrading its technical infrastructure, thus achieving the full digitalization of its network and granting all its customers the possibility to enjoy the services digital technology has to offer.

On 30 June 2000, the number of Direct Exchange Lines was 455.000 including ISDN connections, that is, 67,3 lines per 100 of the population.  This rise continued with the CYTAGSM mobile telephone services as well,  reaching 166.330 subscribers and 24,6 connections per 100 of the population.  Moreover, about 10.000 people today use the GSM SYMPHONY prepaid mobile telephone service.

Mr Zivanaris went on to refer to the efforts made to upgrade and to further expand the variety of products offered by CYTA with the intoduction of new services such as the CytaSMS text message service and the CytaW@P Internet access via mobile telephony.  Mr Zivanaris also referred to major progress in the field of broadband services and to the enrichment of the variety of Internet services through the CytaNetforAll service.  He went on to stress the importance of the acceptance by the Ministry of Education of CYTA’s proposal to link all the schools with the Internet, beginning in September, with the majority using ISDN lines.

He also underlined that the Organization’s continuous efforts for improving its customer services was rewarded in 1999 when CYTA became the first public organization in Cyprus to receive the ISO9000 Quality Certification for its Limassol customer services followed in 2000 by the Larnaca Customer Services.

Mr Zivanaris described the outcome of the year 1999 as very satisfactory.  More specifically, the surplus in 1999 after deducting taxes was £46,3 million in comparison to £39 million in the previous year.  Total income increased by £12,3 million or 7 percent, reaching £178,9 million, while the total amount of expenditures was £118,3 million - that is, £1,7 million or only 1 percent more than in 1998.

Mr Zivanaris also noted the loss the Organization is suffering because of illegal competition, which is actually harming the state, and the citizens of Cyprus.

Referring to the proposal for rebalancing Cyta’s tariffs which is already being examined by the House of Representatives, and in a bid to display CYTA’s good will to assist in the adopting of a positive decision, Mr Zivanaris announced the Authority’s decision to proceed with further major reductions to international rates (up to 78%) and of ISDN subscription fees (33%), as well as CYTAGSM subscription rates (20%).

Mr Zivanaris stressed the significant work done in the sector of international cooperation, the outcome of which is that Cyprus continues to constitute a major telecommunication link in the Eastern Mediterranean.  He stressed that only by making CYTA autonomous and thus granting it the necessary entrepreneurial flexibility can it confront the strong competition in the sector and maintain the position it commands today.  “ . . . certainly any delay and mistakes in this sector will be fatal”  the Chairman stated.

Commenting on CYTA’s activities abroad and the various investments that have been undertaken, the Chairman of CYTA stressed that each and every business transaction has its risks.  He added that “obviously, on the whole, CYTA has succeeded”, and emphasized that “failing to act is a wrong policy and strategy and this is what we should be afraid of”.  He then went on to conclude:

“The danger of failing to act when everyone criticizes failures and ‘forgets’ to recognize success is immense, especially in an Organization like ours where the administration, management, and personnel have nothing to directly benefit from all this and are bred on reproaching mistakes and recognizing success.  Let the State heed this if it actually wants to acquire an honorable position in the new order of economic things and so that Cyprus will not lag behind, in which case its large organizations and businesses will sooner or later end up in other more courageous hands”.

Public Relations Department
11 July 2000

Press Releases
Archive 2000