Littleton, Colo. -- EchoStar Communications Corp. last
Friday reported a record revenue increase of 240 percent during the fourth quarter of 1997
over year-earlier figures.
Its fourth-quarter revenues were $179 million in the
quarter, compared with $52 million during the same period the year before.
The company attributed the record numbers both to continued
subscriber growth and to increased business for its technology and satellite-services
divisions.
"During the past year, we raised over $750 million,
launched our third DBS [direct-broadcast] satellite and activated our 1 millionth Dish
Network subscriber," said Charlie Ergen, EchoStar's chairman and CEO.
Last week, EchoStar added David K. Moskowitz and Nolan
Daines to its board of directors. The company said former board member and company vice
chairman R. Scott Zimmer resigned, effective last Friday.
Also last Friday, the board declared that it will pay a
dividend April 1 on shares of the company's preferred stock.
In other news, EchoStar said last Wednesday that it is
adding new foreign-language premium channels serving Japanese-, French- and
Portuguese-speaking viewers. It will add TV Japan May 1. Radio France Internationale and
RTPi, imported from Portugal, are currently available.
In addition, EchoStar last Friday announced that it has
finalized an agreement with Vtech Communications to manufacture and market Dish Network
hardware.
