XM Satellite Radio added more than 568,000 net new subscribers during the first quarter of 2006, bringing its total number of subscribers to more than 6.5 million, the company announced April 3.
“The first quarter represented another solid quarter of growth in XM subscribers and is consistent with our goal of 9 million subscribers by year end,” Hugh Panero, XM’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “More importantly, our subscriber growth was achieved economically, with a substantial reduction in the cost to acquire a new subscriber as compared to the fourth quarter of 2005.”
In February, XM reported fourth quarter 2005 subscriber acquisition cost of $89, up from $64 in the 2004 fourth quarter, due to higher marketing expenses to counter the addition of Howard Stern by rival Sirius Satellite Radio.
