Independent service provider SureWest Communications (SURW) today announced operating results for the quarter ended Sept. 30, 2008, that include a narrower income loss and greater growth in overall revenue and broadband growth, over the same quarter last year.
The service innovator says revenue increased 39 percent to $60.7 million for the quarter versus $43.8 million for the same period in 2007.
SureWest attributed this to broadband growth and success in its Kansas City market. Net income decreased to a loss of $756,000 from $1.7 million, primarily due to depreciation and acquisition-related interest expenses.
SureWest claimed revenue from broadband increased 13 percent ─ due to subscriber growth ─ and a 9 percent increase in revenue generating unit (RGU). The company said its ongoing network expansion and thus greater market penetration boosted its subscriber base 6 percent.
SureWest reported voice RGUs decreased 5 percent as 2,900 of telecom voice customers migrated to the company's newer VoIP product.
SureWest is based in northern California and expanded into the Kansas City region in February 2008 with the acquisition of Everest Broadband Inc. The company now offers bundled residential and commercial services that include IP-based digital and high-definition television, high-speed Internet, VoIP, and local and long distance telephone.
The carrier’s fiber-to-the-premise IP-based network in the Sacramento region features symmetrical Internet speeds in the nation at up to 50 Mbps. SureWest says that, in its Kansas City market, 75 percent of the company's customers subscribe to at least three services.
