DirecTV loses subscribers for 1st time
The company has turned its focus to improving its customer base and has tightened its customer credit standards.
DirecTV (DTV) has always made a huge push to grow subscribers, which helped it bump up its numbers every quarter. But the company is changing its strategy: It's trying to improve the quality of its subscribers instead of focusing on new subscribers at any cost. It wants customers with better credit who pay more for add-ons like video on demand.
So the company has shifted its focus, and as a result it lost subscribers for the first time. The satellite TV provider said it lost 52,000 subscribers for the quarter ended June 30 to end at 19.9 million. That was more than the 36,000 loss analysts were expecting.
In fact, if it wasn't for Latin America, DirecTV's losses would have been worse. The company added 645,000 new subscribers in the region, higher than the 549,000 analysts were expecting.
The subscriber losses didn't stem from DirecTV's spat with Viacom (VIA), which happened after the June quarter ended. The dispute between the two companies knocked 17 channels off of DirecTV's airwaves for about 10 days in July.
In the June quarter, DirecTV said it tightened its credit standards for customers. It grew its monthly revenue per subscriber to $94.40 from $90.58 a year earlier.
DirecTV's main rival also lost subscribers, but not to the same extent. Dish Network (DISH) lost 10,000 subscribers in the same period, Reuters reports, beating analyst expectations. Time Warner Cable (TWC) said this week it lost 169,000 video subscribers in the same quarter.
Shares of DirecTV fell 2.6% Thursday to close at $48.80. The stock is about where it was a year ago, having recovered from a drop to below $41 last October.
More from Top Stocks
- Just call it 'Fakebook'?
- GM offers financing to subprime buyers
- Green Mountain's roller-coaster ride continues
Direct TV is criminal. Receiver fees go up twice per year. You have to pay an unuaually high fee for "300+" channels and you only watch 5. 180 channels are infomercials, 110 are in spanish, 5 are local.
Show times run for 5 minutes then 5 minutes of loud commercials successively.They say they need to advertise to cover overhead, BS! Im sure the satelittes and towers are paid for by now. MTV doesnt have music anymore, it has interesting shows about rich kids with hard lives, homosexual's with hard lives, and underage pregnant "role-models" with hard lives.
Media everywhere is advertising and has become wasteful as a whole.
I remember years ago complaining about the crap shown on TV, they said if we would pay for our TV we would get better quality shows and see what WE WANTED TO SEE. O.K., so now we pay big bucks for Direct or Dish and we still get crap stuff ... channel after channel of advertising and selling "stuff" ... old movies and they are shown over and over and over. Then they wonder why they are losing customers ? give me a break.
Everyone needs to leave DirectTV. They are CROOKS! I gave them the boot 3 months ago and paid my final bill. Then they sent me another bill for $49.95. When I called them they said it was for a pay-per-view that they had failed to bill me for. They wouldn't tell me the date it was supposedly for. I NEVER EVER ordered or used pay-per-view, so I refused to pay. They charged my credit card anyway. I protested with my card company and DirectTV stated a pay-per-view was ordered 7 years ago and I had never been billed! The credit company ruled in my favor and refunded my account. Now DirectTV continues to send me bills. Please, everyone, give them the boot now.
I am waiting for a cable provider who will let you choose the channels for your own package. Both Direct TV and Dish give you packages which force you to watch a lot of BullSh,,, channels!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wellnot watch...but they include a lot of garbage in their package offerings. And I do mean a lot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
MaN, When will they improve?
Though I think that Directv is the best system, I think the subscribers are getting screwed with their price raises. They used to use the excuse that HD meant new equipment, etc. With a nation-wide base of subscribers, they have to be making money out the wazoo. They could at least offer a Senior Citizens discount. After all, that is all some people have for entertainment--tv.
There was a time when television was a pleasant past time after work, at dinner we wasn't allowed even have it on till after dinner. Then it was a family time of togetherness, how sweet it was!
Then came a new yet exciting format of TV called cable, having more than local channels and
my favorite was channels from other states. It wasn't so complicated and affordable, now it seems the fat corperate dictator oppresses our TV privledges to HD and goodbye free TV so now we pay for a past past time. Very sad!!! I feel the people are geting sick of being told what we can and can't watch muchmore the rediculous rates they charge and these idiots just don't get it people are having hard financial times, money and work, high unemployment crime and no way of escaping through
TV. Since it's all we got to get away from it all at home.
Mr. Dictator goes on and takes too much with little to offer, maybe we'll stick with the simple
analog boxes and the hell with you, unless you work with us we'll work something more reasonable
rate that we all would be comfortable for company and customers.
Sincerely: Martin Stiles
I've had Directv twice, the first time..and the last time. What stopped them from getting my money was not knowing how much they were going to charge for month to month basic service, every month was a different amount. If ever a box goes quits working, they will send out a technician at YOUR EXPENSE to tell you their equipment is shot. And they wonder why people are dumping them.
MORE ON MSN MONEY
DATA PROVIDERS
Copyright © 2013 Microsoft. All rights reserved.
Quotes are real-time for NASDAQ, NYSE and AMEX. See delay times for other exchanges.
Fundamental company data and historical chart data provided by Thomson Reuters (click for restrictions). Real-time quotes provided by BATS Exchange. Real-time index quotes and delayed quotes supplied by Interactive Data Real-Time Services. Fund summary, fund performance and dividend data provided by Morningstar Inc. Analyst recommendations provided by Zacks Investment Research. StockScouter data provided by Verus Analytics. IPO data provided by Hoover's Inc. Index membership data provided by SIX Financial Information.
Japanese stock price data provided by Nomura Research Institute Ltd.; quotes delayed 20 minutes. Canadian fund data provided by CANNEX Financial Exchanges Ltd.
STOCK SCOUTER
StockScouter rates stocks from 1 to 10, with 10 being the best, using a system of advanced mathematics to determine a stock's expected risk and return. Ratings are displayed on a bell curve, meaning there will be fewer ratings of 1 and 10 and far more of 4 through 7.
133 | 267 | 458 | 581 | 667 | 590 | 672 | 429 | 258 | 140 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
LATEST POSTS
Demand for the two metals is growing while mining supply declines.
FIDELITY VIEWPOINTS
- How to sell covered calls - Fidelity Investments
- Savvy year-end tax moves to consider now - Fidelity Investments
- Seven ways to prepare for tax changes
- Five reasons an annual review is crucial - Fidelity Investments
- Take a look at mid caps now - Fidelity Investments
- State of the sector: Health care - Fidelity Investments
VIDEO ON MSN MONEY
ABOUT
Top Stocks provides analysis about the most noteworthy stocks in the market each day, combining some of the best content from around the MSN Money site and the rest of the Web.
Contributors include professional investors and journalists affiliated with MSN Money.
Follow us on Twitter @topstocksmsn.