Scientific-Atlanta Inc. and Harmonic Inc. both logged strong quarterly results, with double-digit increases in profits.
S-A reported second-quarter earnings of $58.7 million on sales of $441.7 million, compared with year-earlier earnings of $51.1 million on sales of $416.6 million.
The company said it sold 911,000 digital set-tops and a record 460,000 “Webstar” modems during the quarter. It also announced that it had a backlog of 1.2 million “Explorer” set-tops on order.
Under the set-top category, S-A said it sold 449,000 digital-video recorders, a 72% increase over last year and a 13% gain sequentially. Of that total, 193,000 were HD/DVRs. Another 111,000 HD set-tops, without DVR capability, were also sold.
S-A added that it had discussions with Gemstar-TV Guide International Inc. regarding a possible settlement and cross-licensing agreement between the two companies, which could result in an additional expense in the quarter.
Harmonic reported net sales of $85.6 million, up 69% from the previous quarter's $50.6 million and a 52% jump over last year's $56.3 million.
GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) net income in the quarter reached $10.2 million versus $1.4 million in the year-earlier period.
For the full year, net sales jumped 36%, from $182.3 million to $248.3 million. The company said the numbers were boosted by "significant orders" it received for digital headend systems for simulcasting.
