SEOUL, KOREA - SK Telecom reported lower-than-expected results for the third quarter of this year primarily due to a reduction in subscription fees. The company announced on October 29 that it recorded sales of 4.36 trillion won and operating profit of 536.6 billion won for the third quarter of this year.
Sales met market expectations (4.37 trillion won) but operating profit failed to do so (590 billion won).Year on year, sales grew 5.9 percent thanks to the increase in the number of LTE subscribers.
The number of LTE subscribers reached 16 million as of the end of September, with the share of LTE subscribers among SK Telecom’s total subscribers estimated at 57 percent. SK Telecom expects the share of LTE subscribers to pass the 60-percent mark by the end of this year.
Despite the increase in sales, operating profit registered a negative year-to-year growth of 1.7 percent due to the reduction in subscription fees.In August, SK Telecom cut its subscription fee by 50 percent from 23,760 won (including value-added tax) to 11,880 won. SK Telecom plans to abolish its subscription fee within next month.
Article provided by The Korea Economic Daily
