As the first-quarter results of Europe’s telecoms giants showed, even the most recession-proof of industries cannot stay entirely immune to the effects of the economic and financial crisis. Some have weathered the storm better than others. France Telecom and Spain’s Telefónica fared well compared with Deutsche Telekom and Vodafone. Best not mention BT. But the pressure was plain to see.

For many of the bigger operators, emerging markets continue to represent a bright spot for growth with low penetration levels and communication- hungry and ever-expanding populations.