UK carrier EE claimed the crown again as Europe’s biggest 4G operator but is still struggling to convert that distinction into revenue growth.

EE added 1.7 million new 4G customers in the past three months and is targeting 14 million by end-2015, according to its Q1 results.

Yet, operating revenue stubbornly refuses to respond, falling 1.1 per cent to £1.47 billion in the period. Excluding the effects of regulation, EE would have posted a small gain of 0.3 per cent.

EE, which is in the process of being sold to BT by owners Orange and Deutsche Telekom, had a 4G base of 9.3 million at end-Q1 2015.

Overall, network connections barely rose by 0.6 per cent to 30.8 million with the main culprit being a seven per cent fall in the operator’s prepaid mobile base. Meanwhile, the postpaid base grew by 3.3 per cent. In theory, the result should have been higher ARPU. In fact, ARPU was virtually flat (a 0.5 per cent fall excluding M2M/MVNO contribution) because of the operator’s revenue performance.

An encouraging sign was a 15 per cent increase in fixed revenue, although the actual revenue figure was not disclosed, just the growth. Fixed broadband connections grew by 19 per cent to 884,000. The operator will also take heart from a 14 per cent increase in M2M connections to 1.98 million.

Total turnover fell by 0.5 per cent to £1.54 billion in the quarter.  No profit figure was given.