Telecompaper

Clearwire added a net 5,000 new customers in the fourth quarter, finishing 2008 with a total 475,000 subscribers for its wireless broadband services. The figures include the Sprint Wimax activities, merged with Clearwire in late November. ARPU improved to USD 39.70 from USD 36.09, while the cost of adding a customer fell to USD 468 from USD 550. The two companies generated pro forma revenues of USD 59.7 million for Q4, up 32 percent form a year earlier, while adjusted EBITDA was a loss of USD 157.3 million versus a negative USD 184.4 million a year ago. Clearwire scaled back capex to USD 83 million in the quarter, and its network now covers 18.2 million POPs. In 2009, Clearwire will roll out mobile Wimax services in Las Vegas, Atlanta, Chicago, Philadelphia and Dallas/Ft. Worth, and transition its existing markets Baltimore, Seattle, Honolulu and Charlotte to the mobile broadband service. The operator expects to cover 75 million POPs by year-end, and reach 120 million by the end of 2010, but noted that the exact timing of market launches will depend on the economic climate. Thanks to its recent investment round, Clearwire finished 2008 with USD 3.1 billion in cash. The company expects a cash outflow of USD 1.5-1.9 billion in 2009. During the build-out phase, Clearwire forecast stable ARPU, but increased churn in transition markets and higher customer acquisition costs. In the summer, Clearwire will launch a dual-mode 3G mobile and Wimax modem, to allow customers to switch between the Clearwire and Sprint networks. By the end of March, a Wi-Fi accessory will also be available, to create a hotspot on the Clear network.