Cablevision Revenue Grows 2.5% Though Subscribers Fall

Cablevision Systems Corp. said its revenue edged 2.5% higher in the first quarter, though subscriber numbers fell across all of its cable segments compared with a year ago.

Cablevision has been aggressively targeting viewers who are looking to "cut the cord" or who enjoy online video services. It became the first pay-television provider to say it will offer HBO's stand-alone streaming service HBO Now.

The company reached a deal in April with streaming video service Hulu to offer the service's catalog of on-demand shows and movies to its customers, becoming the first cable or satellite TV provider to strike such a partnership.

Cablevision also recently became the first major U.S. cable operator to launch a mobile phone service that uses its network of Wi-Fi hot spots.

Cablevision on Monday said its total customers--businesses or households that subscribe to at least one service--fell by 2.3% from the prior-year to 3.1 million as of March 31. Video, voice and high-speed data customer numbers all declined compared with a year ago.

For the quarter ended March 31, Cablevision posted a profit of $44.6 million, or 17 cents a share, down from $89.8 million, or 34 cents a share, a year earlier.

Earnings from continuing operations were 20 cents a share.

Revenue grew to $1.62 billion from $1.58 billion a year earlier.

Analysts had projected 17 cents a share in profit and $1.6 billion in revenue, according to Thomson Reuters.

Net revenue from cable edged up to $1.45 billion from $1.42 billion a year ago. Average monthly cable revenue per customer grew 4.8% to $155.34.

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