CenturyLink reported operating revenues for third quarter 2014 of $4.514 billion compared to $4.515 billion in third quarter 2013. Core revenues were $4.08 billion, a 0.6% year-over-year decline, compared with a 1.0 % year-over-year decline in third quarter 2013. Revenue from high-bandwidth data services grew approximately 17% year-over-year across business and wholesale customers. GAAP net income for third quarter 2014 was $188 million compared to a net loss of $1.05 billion for third quarter 2013, and diluted earnings per share for third quarter 2014 was $0.33 compared to a net loss per share of $1.76 for third quarter 2013.
"CenturyLink's third quarter results reflect our continued success in meeting the demand from business customers for high-bandwidth data services, colocation, managed hosting, cloud and IT services," said Glen F. Post III, chief executive officer and president. "In our Business segment, high-bandwidth data services revenue, including MPLS, Ethernet and Wavelength, grew nearly 12% year-over-year and we achieved year-over-year revenue growth in this segment for the fifth consecutive quarter. We expect the expansion of our symmetrical 1 gigabit service to 16 cities that we announced in August to create additional opportunities to drive strategic revenue growth from businesses and consumers in the months ahead."
Some highlights by customer segment
Consumer
- Revenue growth driven by increased high-speed Internet and CenturyLink Prism TV customers.
- Strategic revenues were $712 million in the quarter, a 6.4% increase over third quarter 2013.
- Generated $1.49 billion in total revenues, a decrease of 0.8% from third quarter 2013, reflecting the continued decline in legacy services offsetting the growth in strategic services.
- Added approximately 14,000 CenturyLink Prism TV customers during third quarter 2014, increasing penetration of the more than 2.2 million addressable homes to approximately 10.3%.
Business
- Revenue growth driven by continued demand for high-bandwidth data services and solid sales momentum.
- Strategic revenues were $677 million in the quarter, a 6.1% increase over third quarter 2013, driven by strength in high-bandwidth offerings such as MPLS, Ethernet and Wavelength services.
- Generated $1.57 billion in total revenues, an increase of 1.6% from third quarter 2013, as growth in high-bandwidth offerings and data integration revenues offset lower legacy services revenues. Data integration revenues were $22 million higher in third quarter 2014 compared to third quarter 2013.
- Continued strong sales momentum in third quarter with solid sales funnel entering fourth quarter and continued success in sales of Managed Office and Managed Enterprise solutions.
Wholesale
- The Wholesale segment ended the quarter with approximately 21,000 fiber-connected towers, an increase of 17% from third quarter 2013.
- Strategic revenues were $560 million in the quarter, down slightly from third quarter 2013, as increases in wireless carrier bandwidth demand and Ethernet sales were offset by declines in low-speed data revenues.
- Generated $843 million in total revenues, a decrease of 4.0% from third quarter 2013, reflecting the continued decline in low-speed data revenues and in legacy revenues, primarily driven by lower long distance and switched access minutes of use, along with access rate reductions from implementation of the CAF Order.
- Completed approximately 1,200 fiber builds in third quarter 2014 and remain on track to complete approximately 2,500 for full-year 2014.
Hosting
- The Hosting segment grew managed hosting (including cloud) and colocation revenues as cross-selling initiatives and product enhancements continue to strengthen sales opportunities.
- Operating revenues were $361 million in the quarter, a 5.6% increase from third quarter 2013.
- Managed hosting revenues were $147 million, representing a 14% increase from third quarter 2013, and colocation revenues were $163 million, a 4.5% increase over the same period a year ago.
- Launched new private cloud service available on the same industry-recognized platform as CenturyLink's public cloud service, enabling new hybrid IT capabilities.
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