Shareholders of Go plc were given an upbeat assessment of the company during their annual general meeting this morning.

Company chairman Sonny Portelli and CEP David Kay said investment made over the past few months in a Greek telecoms and television company and ongoing investment being made in Malta, including a new undersea cable to the continent ensured "a solid and exciting future" for the company.

Mr Kay said last year was significant in that Go became Malta's first quadruple play company, and its position was being strengthened, with strong growth in the television sector. The momentum was being kept up this year, with television subscribers now reaching more than 25,000.

Mr Portelli said the company had had a tough 2007 when it had to face new competition and lower usage of fixed line telephony, but it had continued to enjoy growth in mobile telephony and internet services, as well as venturing into the television sector, where its network coverage has risen to 95 percent of the Maltese islands.

Go earlier this year said that last year it had a turnover of €131.9 million, from €129.3 million in the previous year, while pre-tax profit reached €27.7 million, down marginally from €27.9 million in 2006.

Mr Kay said preliminary work on the new undersea cable has started, and the cable would be laid during the summer and linked up in Italy with the inter-route network, which is partly owned by Tecom, the major shareholder in Go.

He said the focus this year would be on improving the level of customer experience and making Go plc a fully customer-centric organisation.

He said the company would consolidate its growth in existing areas while looking forward to new opportunities, particularly those presented by Smart City.

"I am confident that we are on the right track to continuing to grow and ensure a reasonable return on investment for our shareholders," he said.