Bolstered by about a 33 percent increase in revenue for its broadcast satellite DISH Network system, EchoStar Communications reported a 46 percent increase in total revenue for the third quarter.
Revenue for the DISH Network was $924.6 million for the three months, compared with $617.3 million in the year-ago period. Total EchoStar revenue was $1.02 billion in the third quarter ending Sept. 30, compared with $698 million in the same three months in 2000.
The DISH Network added about 360,000 net new subscribers in the third quarter, an increase of 3 percent over the 350,000 added in the second quarter. However, the increase was 21 percent below the 455,000 added in the third quarter of 2000. The company blamed churn and cable company incentives, among others.
At the end of the three months DISH reported 6.43 million subscribers, a 35 percent increase over the 4.77 million subscribers on board as of Sept. 30, 2000. The company expects to add 1.5 million to 1.75 subscribers in 2001, up from the previous guidance in July of 1.5 million to 1.7 million net new subscribers.
