EarthLink Inc. saw strong growth in its broadband business in the third
quarter, and it managed to improve much of its bottom line for the period.
The Atlanta-based Internet-service provider racked up 77,000 new broadband
subscribers during the quarter, bringing its total to 681,000. Narrowband
subscribers, meanwhile, dropped off 5.2 percent to a little more than 3.9
million.
Monthly customer churn also improved from 5.1 percent in 2001 to 3.7 percent
for the quarter.
Financials for the quarter generally improved, with revenues growing to
$340.7 million, a 6.8 percent increase compared with the same period last
year.
Broadband revenues jumped 47.5 percent to $66.6 million, and that now
constitutes 19.5 percent of EarthLink's total revenue.
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization totaled $22.4
million, a significant improvement from the $1.5 million posted a year ago. The
ISP also narrowed its losses to $30.1 million versus $84.4 million in the third
quarter of 2001.
EarthLink is now offering cable-modem service in all of Time Warner Cable's
high-speed markets, and it recently fired up service in AT&T Broadband's
Seattle and Boston markets.
The company also retooled its guidance for the rest of the year, now
projecting that it will come in at the upper end of its previously stated
broadband new-subscriber range of 250,000 to 300,000.
Revenue is now projected at $1.35 billion to $1.37 billion, but EBITDA is
expected to be at or slightly below the third quarter.
