EARNINGS: DirecTV Profits Rise

DirecTV's 2006 fourth-quarter revenes were up 16% to $4.18 billion. according to the company, with operating profit more than doubling to $915 million over fourth-quarter 2005.

Net income was also more than double to $356 million compared to the previous fourth quarter, helped by an accounting change in the fourth quarter that counted $408 worth of equipment as a capital expense rather than an operational expense.

Earnings per share jumped from .09% to .29%.

DirecTV attributed the jump to a subscription growth--over a million in the quarter--that was up 6% over 4Q2005. They also cited a reduction in subscriber turnover from 1.7% to 1.57%.

DirecTV parent News Corp. is in the process of dealing its stake in DirecTV to John Malone and Liberty for Liberty's stake in News Corp.

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.