Sprint PCS posted better numbers for the recent quarter, while its affiliates saw fewer net adds, as did regional carrier U.S. Cellular Corp.
Sprint PCS posted 390,000 direct customer additions during the fourth quarter of 2003, compared with 250,000 subscribers added during the fourth quarter of 2002. The carrier said it added 554,000 customers through its wholesale channels and 86,000 subscribers through its affiliates during the fourth quarter of last year.
Contributing to the strong customer growth was a reduction in customer churn from 3.5 percent during the fourth quarter of 2002 to 2.7 percent last year, which more than offset a 6.5-percent decline in gross customer additions. Sprint PCS noted customer churn increased following the implementation of local number portability in late November, but was immaterial to overall quarterly churn.
Total revenues increased more than 8 percent year-over-year, from $3 billion during the fourth quarter of 2002 to $3.3 billion last year.
U.S. Cellular added 141,000 net customers during the fourth quarter of 2003, which was in line with analysts’ estimates but a 12-percent drop from the 160,000 subscribers the carrier added during the fourth quarter of 2002. The carrier ended the year with 4.4 million subscribers-a 7-percent increase from the end of 2002.
U.S. Cellular’s management noted it had seen a net gain in customers during the quarter from LNP implementation and touted its 1.4-percent postpaid churn rate as proof of customer satisfaction. The carrier posted a 1.8-percent postpaid churn rate during the fourth quarter of 2002.
Net income increased more than 40 percent, from $14.6 million during the fourth quarter of 2002, a return of 17 cents per share, to $20.6 million in 2003, a return of 24 cents per share.
Dobson
Dobson Communications Corp. reported 14,400 net subscriber additions during the fourth quarter of 2003 including its complete ownership of American Cellular Corp., which the company acquired from former partner AT&T Wireless Services Inc., and ended 2003 with approximately 1.5 million customers.
Dobson also said it had overlaid approximately 728 of its 1,625 cell sites by the end of last month with GSM/GPRS and EDGE-capable hardware as part of its network overlay plans and that it was on schedule and budget to overlay all of its properties in the continental United States by the end of March and its Alaska properties by June 30.
UbiquiTel
Sprint PCS affiliate UbiquiTel Inc. reported preliminary full-year 2003 results showing the carrier added 70,700 net subscribers last year compared with 78,200 net additions during 2002. The carrier said it ended 2003 with 327,700 customers and that it expects to add between 60,000 and 80,000 new subscribers this year.
Total revenues increased year-over-year from $220.8 million in 2002 to $273.3 million last year, and are expected to increase this year to between $343 million and $363 million.
AirGate
Meanwhile, Sprint PCS affiliate AirGate PCS Inc. posted preliminary operating results for its first fiscal quarter ending Dec. 31, 2003, including year-over-year drops in both customer additions and churn as well as mixed financial performance.
The carrier said it added 438 net customers during its first fiscal quarter ended Dec. 31, 2003, which was well below the 13,670 customers the carrier added during the previous year, but ahead of the 4,697 subscribers the carrier lost during the previous quarter.
