M1's fibre broadband subscribers ballooned 8,000

And that's just in the last 3 months.

According to CIMB, M1 added 8k fibre subscribers during 1Q13 for a total of 60k.

Here's more:

The management expects this strong trend to continue, fuelled by: 1) a still-low fibre penetration, only at an estimated 24% of total households, 2) a wider coverage of the next generation national broadband (GNBN) fibre network, and 3) a better service delivery from OpenNet.

It also said that its fibre broadband business is EBITDA positive and nearing optimum levels for breaking even. We concur with management and expect fibre adoption to pick up given that consumers are always looking for higher speeds for a better surfing and downloading experience.

However, we note that there is an increase in competition driven by smaller players like MyRepublic and ViewQuest, who are lowering prices to gain more market share.

As broadband speeds are offered at lower prices, we believe ARPUs will come under pressure as consumers trade down to lower-priced plans but are still able to enjoy good surfing speeds.