Hutchison Telecommunications (
Australia
) reported that its first half net loss widened to A$524.7 million ($399 million) as of June 30, compared with a loss of A$305.3 million ($232.1 million) the previous year, a Dow Jones report said.
The Dow Jones report said Hutchison attributed the loss to a write-down it took as it switched off its CDMA network.
The Dow Jones report, quoting a Hutchison statement, also said revenue from continuing operations rose to A$490.5 million ($373.3 million) from A$449.1 million ($342.1 million) a year ago.
The group booked costs of A$299.2 million ($227.6 million) for the CDMA network closure, which were reflected in the headline result, the Dow Jones report said.
The company said its 3G customer base grew by 390,000 subscribers during the half, including 256,000 customers moved over from its CDMA network, the report said.
It had a total of 1.044 million customers at the end of the reporting period, of which 88.3% were post-paid subscribers.
Hutchison's APRU also fell by 5.8% for the half, due to the broadening of its customer base and a reduction in mobile interconnection rates, the Dow Jones report said.
Subscriber acquisition costs for its 3G business fell to A$265 ($201) per customer for the half, compared with A$427 ($324.8) a year ago, due to falling handset prices.