AT&T Wireless Services Inc. reported 229,000 net subscriber additions during the third quarter of this year, which was well below analysts estimates of more than 300,000 net customer additions, but ahead of the 201,000 subscribers the carrier added during the third quarter of 2002.
Weighing on the carrier’s customer growth was a higher-than-anticipated 2.7-percent customer churn result, which topped the 2.5 percent predicted by analysts, but again better than 2002 results, when the carrier reported 2.9-percent customer churn during the third quarter. AT&T Wireless’ management noted that the higher-than-expected customer churn, especially in relation to the 2.2-percent churn the carrier reported during the second quarter of this year, was due to the removal of “unprofitable customers from its base, the departure of traditional prepaid customers and an increase in contract expirations during the third quarter.”
Other operating metrics reported included $61.20 in average revenue per user, which was in line with estimates and down a fraction year-over-year; $32.10 in cash cost per user, which was also in line with estimates; and $335 in cost per gross addition, which was nearly 11 percent lower than the $376 AT&T Wireless reported last year and partly attributed to an increasing percentage of gross adds from the carrier’s GoPhone offering.
Financially, AT&T Wireless reported $4.4 billion in revenues, which was slightly above analyst estimates and more than a 7-percent year-over-year increase. The carrier also reported net income of $129 million during the third quarter, or 8 cents per share, which was in line with estimates and well ahead of the more than $2 billion loss reported last year.
AT&T Wireless also reported the launch of its GoPort Wi-Fi service at Philadelphia’s International Airport and that it is in the planning phases to deploy service at the Raleigh-Durham International Airport. AT&T Wireless added that it now offers service in six international airports, including Denver; Dallas/Fort Worth; Philadelphia; Seattle-Tacoma; San Jose, Calif.; and Austin-Bergstrom, Texas, as well as in more than 500 hotels through roaming agreements.
