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EchoStar Reports Strongly Rising Net Income In Second Quarter 2003

By Staff Writer | August 13, 2003

      Littleton, Colo.-based EchoStar Communications [Nasdaq: DISH], fueled by a gain of 270,000 net new subscribers, boosted its second quarter 2003 revenues to $1.41 billion, up 21 percent from $1.17 billion for the same quarter last year.

      The subscriber gain lifted EchoStar’s total customer base to approximately 8.8 million at the end of June, and sent net income soaring to $129 million for the second quarter of 2003, compared to net income of $37 million during the corresponding period in 2002. In addition, EchoStar’s earnings per share jumped to 27 cents during second quarter 2003, up from 8 cents a share for the same quarter last year.

      Net income for second quarter 2003 benefited from reductions in subscriber acquisition costs, primarily due to a legal settlement that entailed a $34.4 million reimbursement for previously sold set-top boxes. Net income for the same period in 2002 included non-recurring, favorable legal resolutions totaling approximately $10 million and an adjustment of approximately $17 million mainly to cut accrued royalty expenses.