Viasat grows subscriber base, revenues in Q4

Nordic pay-TV platform Viasat added a net 16,000 new subscribers in the fourth quarter, for a total 1.058 million at year-end. Satellite subscribers fell by 2,000 to 638,000, while subscribers on third-party networks rose by 19,000 to 421,000. Annualised average revenue per satellite subscriber (ARPU) increased by 5 percent year on year to SEK 4,791 and was stable compared to SEK 4,751 in the third quarter of 2011. The increase reflects price increases in 2011 and the ongoing rise in the penetration of value-added services. Despite higher costs for expanding the online service and sports content, operating profit was up 18 percent from a year earlier to SEK 246 million. Viasat announced separate results for its emerging market operations. There it added 72,000 new subscribers in Q4, led by Russia and Ukraine, for a total 532,000 at year-end. Revenues rose 6 percent to SEK 237 million, while operating profit fell 78 percent to SEK 7 million, amid investments in the mini-pay platform and expansion costs. Viasat's parent company Modern Times Group reported quarterly sales up 3 percent to SEK 3.71 billion, while the net result moved to a loss of SEK 2.56 billion from a profit of SEK 2.36 billion, due to a writedown of the value of its Bulgarian broadcast operations.