Dish Network Corp. swung to a second-quarter profit as the
satellite-television provider reported stronger revenue and
narrower pay-TV subscriber losses.
There has been significant potential for consolidation in the
pay-TV market, with recent deals showing how the biggest companies
in television and telecommunications are trying to bulk up to face
a changing media landscape. In May, AT&T Inc. agreed to acquire
DirecTV, a deal that would make it a major player in pay television
and increase its clout with media companies at a time when video
consumption is moving online. That agreement came just months after
Comcast Corp.'s $45 billion agreement to buy Time Warner Cable
Inc.
Dish posted a profit of $213.3 million, or 46 cents a share,
compared with a year-earlier loss of $11.1 million, or two cents a
share.
Revenue rose 5.7% to $3.69 billion, while total costs fell
6.6%.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters had projected earnings of 51
cents a share and revenue of $3.69 billion.
Dish, which has struggled to boost its subscriber numbers, lost
44,0000 net pay-TV subscribers during the three months ended June
30, versus a loss of about 78,000 during the same period a year
earlier. The year-over-year decrease in the loss of net pay-TV
subscribers was primarily due to higher gross new pay-TV subscriber
activations. The company ended the quarter with about 14.1 million
pay-TV subscribers, up from 14 million a year earlier.
The company also added about 36,000 net broadband subscribers in
the quarter, versus additions of 61,000 in the previous year's
quarter.
Write to Anna Prior at anna.prior@wsj.com
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