WEST POINT, Ga.-Powertel Inc. said it nearly doubled its personal communications services customer base in the fourth quarter, adding 53,000 customers and closing 1997 with 119,000 subscribers, an 80 percent increase over reported third-quarter ending subscribers of 66,000.
The average monthly PCS churn rate was 3.7 percent for the year, and for the fourth quarter it was 4.9 percent. Powertel reported in the third quarter it expected its PCS churn rate to remain above average in the fourth quarter as it continued to deactivate the majority of its non-paying accounts.
“During the third and fourth quarters, Powertel has taken aggressive steps to reduce churn during 1998,” said Allen Smith, president and chief executive officer of Powertel. “We’ve added a corporate customer service executive whose responsibilities include fraud and churn minimization, increased the size of our dedicated collection departments, tightened credit scoring criteria and implemented certain sophisticated fraud detection tools. We’re confident that these changes as well as the high value and quality proposition we provide to customers will result in lower churn during 1998.”
During the fourth quarter, Powertel launched Global System for Mobile communications service in three Georgia markets: Atlanta, Macon-Warner Robins and Savannah. For the year, the company launched 11 total markets, and at year-end, Powertel’s network covered a population of 10.3 million people, resulting in a penetration rate of 1.1 percent. With 24 operational markets and connecting highway corridors spanning seven states, Powertel said it has the largest contiguous PCS footprint in the Southeastern United States.
Powertel’s InterCel cellular division, serving portions of Alabama and Georgia, added about 1,000 net cellular subscribers during the fourth quarter, closing the period with about 26,000 cellular subscribers.
The company plans to release fourth quarter and year-end financial results Feb. 5.
