BT earnings slide on £225m settlement with Deutsche Telekom, Orange

BT's fiscal first quarter pretax proft fell 42% on last year after it paid £225 million to settle claims from shareholders Deutsche Telekom and Orange.Deutsche Telekom and Orange own 12% and 1.33% of BT respectively, having taken stakes when they sold mobile operator EE to it in 2015. Orange's stake originally stood at 4%, but it sold a chunk of it in June.Under the agreement, Deutsche Telekom and Orange were given warranty protection in the event that BT's share price took a hit. That is