OKLAHOMA CITY, July 20, 2004 (PRIMEZONE) -- Dobson Communications Corporation (Nasdaq:DCEL) today reported approximately 107,000 total gross subscriber additions for the quarter ended June 30, 2004, compared with approximately 99,600 total gross subscriber additions in the immediately previous quarter.
The Company reported approximately 7,200 total net subscriber additions for the quarter ended June 30, 2004, compared with a net reduction of approximately 5,400 net subscribers for the first quarter of the year. Postpaid customer churn was 1.7 percent for the second quarter of 2004, compared with 1.9 percent for the immediately previous quarter.
The Company completed the acquisition of the assets of NPI-Omnipoint Wireless, LLC (Michigan) on June 16, 2004, and as part of the transaction acquired approximately 33,100 subscribers. As of June 30, 2004, Dobson served a total of approximately 1,607,500 subscribers.
For the second quarter of 2003, Dobson generated total gross subscriber additions of approximately 94,500 for the combined operations of Dobson and American Cellular. Postpaid customer churn was 1.6 percent for the second quarter last year, and the Company had approximately 19,900 net subscribers additions.
The Company plans to include additional operating data on its acquired markets when it publishes its full second quarter operating results on August 9, 2004 and as part of its quarterly earnings conference call at 8 a.m. CT on Tuesday, August 10.
Other second quarter operating data
Total average revenue per unit (ARPU) for the second quarter was approximately $40, compare with total ARPU of approximately $38.75 for the first quarter and $39.75 for the second quarter last year.
Roaming revenue was approximately $50 million for the second quarter of 2004. Roaming minutes of use (MOUs) for the second quarter were approximately 360 million, which includes NPI from June 16 to the end of the quarter. This compares with approximately 353 million roaming MOUs for the same quarter last year, on a same-store basis that includes roaming MOUs from the new Alaska markets, Michigan RSA 5 and American Cellular.
During the second quarter of 2004, Dobson's TDMA customers continued to migrate to GSM calling plans at a higher rate than expected, increasing the costs associated with migrations. At the end of the second quarter, the Company had approximately 152,600 GSM customers (postpaid and prepaid), compared with approximately 11,800 at the end of the first quarter of 2004. Contributing to the total of GSM customers at June 30, 2004 were approximately 39,800 GSM gross subscriber additions during the second quarter, 68,700 TDMA-to-GSM migrations, and 33,100 GSM customers acquired in the NPI transaction.
Dobson Communications is a leading provider of wireless phone services to rural markets in the United States. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, the Company owns wireless operations in 16 states. For additional information on the Company and its operations, please visit its Web site at www.dobson.net.