T-Mobile USA added 802,000 net new customers, up from 613,000 net new customers added in the second quarter of 2006 and down from 1.06 million in the third quarter of 2005.
Postpay customer additions were strong making up 96% of third quarter customer growth, up from 83% in the second quarter of 2006.
Postpay customers comprised 85% of T-Mobile USA’s total customer base at September 30, 2006. Close to 80% of new postpay customers opted for two-year contract terms in the third quarter.
“T-Mobile USA continues to be Deutsche Telekom’s key growth driver. The additional investments we’ve made in the AWS auction were essential to continue the profitable growth of T-Mobile USA for years to come. Also, we’re importing T-Mobile USA’s service models into our European operations because of their outstanding customer service, as recognized by numerous awards,” said René Obermann, CEO of T-Mobile International and member of the Board of Management of Deutsche Telekom AG.
ARPU was $52 in the third quarter of 2006, unchanged from the second quarter of 2006 and down from $53 in the third quarter of 2005. Postpay ARPU was $56 in the third quarter of 2006, up from $55 in the second quarter of 2006 and the third quarter of 2005. The sequential increase in postpay ARPU related primarily to continued data revenue growth. The fall in blended ARPU year on year is primarily due to the higher proportion of prepaid customers in the customer base in 2006.
Data services revenue (which excludes Wi-Fi revenues) from postpay and prepaid customers continued to grow, reaching a total of $421 million in the third quarter of 2006. Data revenues, which are a component of service revenues, represented 11.3% of blended ARPU, or $5.91 per customer, in the third quarter of 2006, compared to 10.9%, or $5.65, in the second quarter of 2006 and 8.3% or $4.39, in the third quarter of 2005.
CAPEX was $569 million in the third quarter of 2006, compared with $593 million in the second quarter of 2006 and $585 million in the third quarter of 2005. As part of its ongoing commitment to network coverage and quality, T-Mobile USA added approximately 800 new cell sites in the third quarter of 2006, bringing the total number of cell sites to almost 35,300.
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