August 9, 2005

Regional telecommunications provider and former AT&T Wireless Services Inc. wireless affiliate Cincinnati Bell Inc. said it lost 10,000 wireless customers during the second quarter, ending the first half of the year with 469,000 subscribers.

The company noted the customer loss included 3,000 postpaid customers, which was an improvement compared with the 7,000 postpaid customers it lost during the first quarter of the year.

Cincinnati Bell added 9,000 wireless customers during the second quarter of 2004 when it was still an AWS affiliate, but since gaining its independence from AWS last August, it has lost 26,000 wireless subscribers. The company added that it expects to generate positive net postpaid customer growth in the fourth quarter of this year.

Postpaid customer churn increased from 1.95 percent during the second quarter of 2004 to 2.2 percent this year, but fell sequentially from the 2.6 percent the company posted during the first quarter of this year. Cincinnati Bell attributed the sequential improvement to higher network quality and new rate plans that include unlimited calling to any on-network wireless or wireline number.

Postpaid average revenue per user dropped from $56 during the second quarter of 2004 to $48 this year, while prepaid ARPU jumped 10 percent from $19 last year to $21 this year. Cincinnati Bell attributed the postpaid ARPU slump to lower roaming and voice revenues offsetting higher data revenues, and the prepaid ARPU increase to a 60-percent surge in data revenues.

Total wireless revenues dropped 10.5 percent from $67 million during the second quarter of 2004 to $60 million this year. Cincinnati Bell noted that higher data and equipment revenues were offset by lower postpaid voice revenue and a $3 million reduction in roaming revenue related to Cingular Wireless L.L.C.'s acquisition of AWS.

Wireless operating income also dropped from $6.6 million during the second quarter of last year to a loss of $1.5 million this year.

Source: RCR News