Locals-Deals Drive EchoStar 1Q
skyreport.com
EchoStar floored analysts with its first quarter
numbers, particularly DISH Network subscriber
counts for the three-month period.
During the first quarter, EchoStar added
455,000 net subscribers for its DISH Network
service, ending with approximately 3.865 million
subscribers as of March 31. This week, DISH
Network crossed the 4 million subscriber mark.
EchoStar Chairman Charlie Ergen said local
channels and free dish promotions propelled
subscriber enrollments. He added that more than
half of the service's customers are taking
local channels in the 28 markets it serves.
Ergen also said retransmission deals the company
is negotiating with broadcasters are "making good
progress, but it will go down to the wire."
DBS companies have until the end of May to sign
retransmission agreements with broadcasters
for carriage of local stations.
"I think taking local channels down (in May)
is pretty remote," Ergen said. "I think it's
a minor to low risk for the company."
Analysts were impressed with the subscriber
numbers. "We knew first quarter DBS growth
would be strong, but this is better than we
thought," C.E. Unterberg Towbin's William
Kidd said of the DISH numbers. Bear Stearns'
Vijay Jayant said the subscriber numbers were
"better than expectations." He predicted DISH
would end up with 415,000.
EchoStar reported revenue of $566 million for
the first quarter, compared to $310 million
for the corresponding period in 1999. Pre-marketing
cash flow grew to $186 million. The company's
operating loss for the quarter totaled $142
million, compared to $56 million reported during
the corresponding period in 1999. As expected,
record customer growth led to increased upfront
acquisition costs, which impacted the operating
loss.
EchoStar also promoted Michael Dugan to president
and chief operating officer. He will assume
responsibility for all operational aspects at
the company, including DISH Network and EchoStar
Technologies Corporation.
DISH Unveils New Promotion
EchoStar will debut its "Digital Dynamite"
program for DISH Network today, an effort
that will allow new customers to pick up two
DBS receivers virtually for free.
Under the program, customers can get two
receivers if they pay a one-time fee of
$99 and commit to paying $49.99 a month
for the America's Top 150 programming
package. The $99 charge pays for installation
of both receivers and covers the $5 monthly
fee associated with second receivers.
Through Digital Dynamite, customers get
a three-year price guarantee on the
AT-150 package price and in-home service
and support if problems surface with
the equipment.
Receivers that are part of the package
include model 2700 and model 4922. The
latter model has OpenTV interactive
software built inside.
EchoStar also will extend its "One Rate"
promotion. Under that deal, customers
can get a free DISH 500 system if they
commit to programming that amounts to
$39.98 a month for a year. However, instead
of free installation, new customers must
pay a $99 installation fee if they want |
