Sirius Reports Record Revenue, Subscriber Growth In 2005

Sirius Satellite Radio recorded revenue of $242.2 million in 2005, compared to revenue of $66.9 million in 2004, the company reported Feb. 17. The gains were driven by a net subscriber increase of 2.2 million during 2005, driven by the addition of Howard Stern to Sirius’ lineup.

Sirius reported a net loss of $863 million in 2005, up from a loss of $712.2 million in 2004, driven by a 101 percent increase in subscriber acquisition costs reflecting higher shipments of radios and chip sets and increased commissions to support an increase in gross subscriber additions.

Sirius closed 2005 with 3.3 million subscribers, a 138 percent increase over subscribers at the end of 2004. Sirius expects to cross the 6-million subscriber mark by the end of 2006, with subscriber acquisition costs nearing $110 and declining further in 2007.

XM Loss Grows, Director Resigns

XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. posted a larger loss as higher programming and marketing cost offset revenue gains, the company said Feb. 16.

XM posted a loss of $666.7 million in 2005, compared to a net loss of $642.4 million in 2004. Revenue jumped 128 percent from $244.4 million in 2004 to $558.3 million in 2005, driven by subscriber growth and increases in average revenue per subscriber. Subscriber acquisition cost was $64 in 2005, up slightly from $62 in 2004. XM attributed the increase to higher marketing expenses to counter the addition of Howard Stern by rival Sirius Satellite Radio.

XM finished 2005 with 5.9 million subscribers and crossed the 6 million mark in early January and expects to exceed 9 million subscribers by the end of 2006 and reach 20 million by 2010.

While the numbers looked relatively strong, company director, Pierce Roberts, resigned from the board, the company said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. "Given current course and speed there is, in my view, a significant chance of a crisis on the horizon," Roberts said in a Feb. 13 letter to the board. "Even absent a crisis, I believe that XM will inevitably serve its shareholders poorly without major changes now. It is clear to me that I cannot be part of the solution and I will not be part of the problem."

XM shares closed at $23.98 Feb. 16, down from a close of $25.25 Feb. 15.

Eutelsat Sees Solid Revenue Gains

Eutelsat Communications has announced revenues of 395 million euros ($470.5 million) for the six months ended Dec. 31. This represents an increase of about 6.5 percent compared to the same stage last year.

Video applications remained the key driver for Eutelsat accounting for 259 million euros ($308.5 million) of the overall figure. The operator saw an increase in the number of TV channels it broadcasts, adding 75 channels in the six months. Data service revenues were up almost 8 percent compared to the same stage last year.