stay in second and third places.

Cellular operators Cellcom Israel Ltd.(NYSE:CEL; TASE:CEL) and Partner Communications Ltd. (Nasdaq: PTNR; TASE:PTNR), which have been having a tough time coping with the growing competition in the sector in recent years, were in second and third place, respectively. Cellcom’s revenue plunged 17% to NIS 5 billion in 2013, while Partner’s revenue sank 19% to NIS 4.5 billion.

Hot Telecommunication Systems Ltd. (TASE:HOT.B1) was the only one of the five communications groups to increase its revenue in 2013, gaining a miniscule 0.9% to NIS 4.2 billion. In fifth place was DBS Satellite Services (1998) Ltd. (YES), whose revenue was down 0.1% to NIS 1.6 billion.

Bezeq was the only telecommunications group with a profit ratio of more than 10% – its NIS 1.7 billion net profit reflected an 18.5% profit ratio. Hot was the only group whose profit ratio declined (by 1.5%) and the only one to post a loss (NIS 6.2 million). The five leading telecommunications groups in 2013 had an aggregate profit ratio of 6.5%.

The five leading groups had almost NIS 25 billion in aggregate revenue, and jointly employed 27,000 workers.