Alteva reported that its first-quarter unified communications (UC) revenues, net of eliminations were $4 million, up sequentially 15.6 percent, a factor that helped to ease the pain of the 9 percent decline in telephone segment revenue.
Overall revenues rose 11.8 percent from $6.9 million in the fourth quarter of 2012.
Although still operating a rural telco business, Alteva has been expanding its focus on the cloud and UC market segment, which contributed about 51 percent of revenues in Q1 2013--up from 46 percent for the same period in 2012 and 49 percent in the fourth quarter 2012.
The service provider attributes the increase in UC revenues to organically-generated UC services revenue growth and a record level of UC equipment sales. As of the end of Q1, it had a combined total of 33,200 retail and wholesale users on its hosted platform, up 14 percent sequentially.
"The results derived from our UC segment continue to set new records, including revenues reaching the highest level in company history, revenues expanding as a percentage of consolidated sales, UC equipment sales, seat sales and seats added to implementation," said David Cuthbert, Alteva's president and CEO, in the earnings release. "It is important to note that the sale of lower margin UC equipment will lead to increased recurring services revenue in the future."
As expected, Alteva's telephone segment revenues, while contributing about 49 percent of revenues in Q1 2013, remained flat year-over-year at $3.8 million. Alteva said that the decrease in telephone services revenues, which were the result of access line losses due to wireless substitution and cable competition, "was primarily offset by an increase in access lines rates and growth in broadband Internet services revenues."
Shares of Alteva were listed at $10.08, up 0.03, or 0.26 percent, in Wednesday morning trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange.
For more:
- see the earnings release
Editor's Corner: Unified communications breathes new business revenue life into rural telcos
Earnings roundup: Wireline telecom earnings in the first quarter of 2013
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