MEXICO CITY-Leading prepaid wireless provider Tracfone Wireless Inc., which is owned by Latin American telecommunications provider America Movil, said it added 83,000 subscribers during the second quarter, compared with 213,000 customers added during the second quarter of 2004. The company ended the first half of the year with 4.9 million total customers.
Customer churn surged half a percentage point from 4.4 percent during the second quarter of last year to 4.9 percent this year. Despite an 8.8-percent increase in monthly minutes of use from 58 minutes during the second quarter of 2004 to 63 minutes this year, average revenue per user dipped 5 percent from $15 last year to $14 this year.
Total revenues jumped 30.8 percent year-over-year from $185 million during the second quarter of 2004 to $241 million this year, while earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization climbed 61.6 percent from $19 million last year to $31 million this year.
