Bellevue, Wash. –
began expanding its subscriber base again in the fourth quarter, when the number
of 3G smartphones on its network grew by almost 40 percent from the third
quarter to 3.9 million, the carrier announced.
The expanded smartphone
base and the near doubling of the carrier’s 3G HSPA footprint during the year to
more than 205 million people boosted data-service revenue 19 percent for the
year, the carrier said in announcing fourth-quarter financial results. In
addition, the company upgraded its entire HSPA footprint to faster 7.2Mbps HSPA
technology in the fourth quarter.
The HSPA expansion, improved 3G phone
lineup, new rate plans that offer unsubsidized handsets with no contracts, and
the planned expansion of faster HSPA+ data service in 2010 beyond Philadelphia
“puts T-Mobile in a new competitive position to drive increasing data usage and
entice quality customers to T-Mobile,” said president/CEO Robert
Dotson.
The number of net new subscribers grew in the fourth quarter to
371,000, an improvement over a third-quarter loss of 77,000 subscribers but down
from a year-ago gain of 621,000, the company said. For the year, the company
expanded its subscriber base by 1 million net new subscribers to 33.8 million
compared to a 2008 net gain of 4.1 million subscribers (1.13 million of which
were the result of the SunCom Wireless acquisition in February 2008) and 3.64
million net new customers added in 2007.
Fourth-quarter net income fell
to $306 million from a third-quarter $417 million and year-ago $483 million.
Fourth-quarter revenues of $5.41 billion were down from the year-ago quarter’s
$5.72 billion but up sequentially from the third-quarter’s $5.38
billion.
