LITTLE ROCK, Ark.—Alltel Corp. reported 80,250 net wireless subscriber additions for the first quarter compared with 108,787 net subscriber additions for the first quarter of 2001. Alltel, which ended the quarter with more than 6.7 million customers, said it expects to add more than 700,000 wireless customers following the close of its acquisition of CenturyTel Inc.’s wireless assets.
Customer churn for the quarter was reported at 2.3 percent, a slight drop from the 2.4 percent posted last year. Average revenue per user also fell from $45.87 during the first quarter last year to $45.54 this year, with the cost to acquire a new customer rising from $266 to $316.
Wireless revenues jumped from $919.1 million last year to $944.1 million this year, a 3-percent increase, while wireless operating income jumped 16 percent from $190.5 million to $220.2 million.
