Consumers continue to buy more smartphones, helping to lift AT&T’s first-quarter profits 3 percent to $3.7 billion, the company reported Tuesday.
Revenue dipped 1.5 percent to $31.4 billion, as the number of traditional landline telephone subscribers continued to drop off.
AT&T’s Atlanta-based wireless unit sold 6 million smartphones during the first three months of 2013, a record for the first quarter, the company said. More than 70 percent of AT&T Mobility’s subscribers with long-term contracts now use smartphones, the company said.
“These are the premium subscribers” for the company, said John Stephens, chief financial officer for AT&T.
“Smartphone subscribers continue to be a wise investment,” Stephens said in a conference call with investors. “You know the value they bring.”
Smartphone consumers typically use their phones for more than just talking and texting, bringing in more money for AT&T through the company’s mobile data plans. Revenue for mobile data — texting, streaming video, sending email and using the Internet — was up 21 percent for the quarter, ending March 30.
Stephens said the future for AT&T lies in mobility and having a robust high-speed broadband and wireless network. The company continues to expand use of smart devices, including the “connected” car and “digital” home.
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