[5/10/07] DirecTV Group Inc. posted a profit of $336 million in the 2007 first quarter, up 43 percent from a year ago, the company announced May 9.

Revenues improved 15 percent to $3.9 billion over the same period. In the 2006 first quarter, DirecTV earned $235 million on revenues of $3.4 billion.

DirecTV attributed the revenue gains to strong growth in average revenue per subscriber and a larger subscriber base at DirecTV U.S., as well as the consolidation of Sky Brazil’s financial results. Income gains were driven by improvements in operating profit, which were partially offset by higher income tax expense.

DirecTV attributed net subscriber additions of 235,000 to an increase in gross additions and the company’s lowest monthly churn rate in three years. The subscriber base for DirecTV was 16.2 million at the end of March, an increase of 5 percent over 15.4 million subscribers at the end of March 2006.

“Particularly noteworthy was the significant growth in advanced products in the quarter, including the addition of nearly twice as many high-definition customers compared to the prior year,” Chase Carey, DirecTV president and CEO, said in a prepared statement.