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T-Mobile Q3 show continued subscriber growth, may catch Sprint in Q4

T-Mobile's Uncarrier initiatives have shaken up the US wireless industry and continue to draw customers away from its rivals.
Written by Matthew Miller, Contributing Writer

Back in August, T-Mobile's CEO John Legere predicted it would overtake Sprint's number three position before the end of 2014.

T-Mobile's third-quarter 2014 results show it added 2.3 million new customers, and may just achieve this goal next quarter as it trails Sprint by approximately 2 million subscribers.

The company's Uncarrier initiatives look to be bringing in customers. But it also appears that this growth may be costing it, as the company reported a $92 million quarterly loss — or a loss of 12 cents a share.

The cellular giant also turned in revenue of $7.35 billion. 

Wall Street was expecting a profit of 3 cents a share in earnings, on revenue of $7.44 billion.

The fifth largest US cellular firm added 1.8 million postpaid customers, which after cutting contracts now land in as standard monthly subscribers. It also added 411,000 prepaid net additions.

It also stated that 10 million total customers have been added over the last six quarters, with average billings per user also rising.

The iPhone 6 is T-Mobile's most successful launch device ever, despite some early pre-order challenges. Uncarrier 7.0 promised all new smartphones would have Wi-Fi Calling, along with free texting while on flights with Gogo inflight service. This functionality has been very handy during my recent flights around the country.

T-Mobile expects its full-year adjusted earnings to be between $5.6 to $5.8 billion, unchanged from the prior guidance.

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