TDS reports lower revenue, line equivalent gain

Telephone and Data Systems, which owns U.S. Cellular and wireline independent telco TDS Telecom, reported fourth-quarter earnings last week that included a 3.2 percent dip in TDS Telecom's revenue, but a boost in access line equivalents due to an increase in residential DSL customers, an uptick in overall data revenue and assets gained through acquisitions.

A 24 percent increase in DSL customers for its ILEC operation give the company a total of 178,000 users in that unit. ILEC unit data revenue was up 18.9 percent to $24.2 million. Access lines equivalents increased 1.8 percent to 776,700, with some of that strength due to acquisitions, though ILEC physical access lines declined to 566,200. TDS late last year acquired State Long Distance Telcom, and bought Mosinee Telephone Company last summer.

For more:
- CNN Money has this Dow Jones Newswires story

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