DENVER—EchoStar Communications Corp., the nation’s second-largest satellite television operator, said Friday its net income rose 43 percent as subscriber revenue climbed and costs to acquire new customers decreased.
The company, however, acknowledged that the sluggish U.S. economy and increased competition has taken a toll on its business, with the subscribers base growing at a slower rate than a year ago.
The number of customers who stopped service, an industry measure called a churn rate, was 1.94 percent for the quarter compared with 1.76 percent in the 2006 quarter.
In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, EchoStar said its subscriber base was hurt by competitors who are able to offer bundles of television, Internet and telephone services.
For the quarter ended Sept. 30, EchoStar reported net income of $199.7 million, or 44 cents a share, compared with net income of $139.6 million, or 31 cents a share, in the year-ago quarter.
Revenue climbed to $2.79 billion from $2.48 billion in the previous third quarter.
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had forecast earnings of 17 cents a share on revenue of $2.8 billion. The forecasts typically exclude one-time items.
The company said the number of subscribers to its Dish Network increased by 110,000 net new subscribers, up 7.4 percent to 13.7 million. That compared with 295,000 net new subscribers who signed up in the third quarter of 2006.
The monthly average revenue per subscriber grew to $66.01, compared with $63.28 in the third quarter of 2006 while its subscriber acquisition costs dipped 8.7 percent to $401 million.
In the first nine months, EchoStar reported net income of $581.02 million, or $1.29 a share, compared with net income of $455.7 million, or $1.02 a share in the comparable period of 2006. Revenue rose to $8.2 billion from $7.24 billion.
The company, based in suburban Englewood, released its earnings after the market closed. Its stock closed down $1.96 at $48.51 a share in Friday trading.
