Virgin Mobile adds 216,000 subscribers

MetroPCS’s behemoth fourth quarter showing, but Virgin Mobile USA didn’t do so poorly themselves. They picked up a net 216,000 subscribers in the fourth quarter, bringing their total to roughly 5,380,000, or just shy of Metro’s mark. This level of growth was aided by a 4.8 percent churn rate, which is considerably lower than their 5.5 percent mark in the third quarter. That was even better than Metro’s 5.1 percent churn. VM CEO Dan Schulman notes that the gains are not only a result of the changes and additions the company made in 2008, but because of the economy:

“Our new offers have helped lead to strong customer growth and improved retention as consumers look for value and flexibility during uncertain economic times.”

It was just five months ago that the company blamed the economy for a poor second quarter showing. Said Schulman: “While net revenues declined year over year due to general economic conditions and their resultant impact on consumer budgets…” Schulman went on to break down some of Virgin’s strong points:

“Our hybrid plans continue to grow in popularity, accounting for over 50% of our gross adds in October and November and 29% of our subscriber base at the end of November. We expect the growth of these plans to lead to continued improvement in ARPU trends in the fourth quarter of 2008.”

Sounds good for VM. The true test, though, will be the first quarter this year. How will a post-holiday drop-off affect their numbers?]]>