• by Karlene Lukovitz  @KLmarketdaily, February 22, 2021

Dish Network lost 133,000 pay-TV subscribers in 2020’s fourth quarter, reflecting a loss of 149,000 Dish satellite subscribers, partially offset by a gain of 16,000 Sling TV streaming subscribers.

Its combined total of 11.29 million subscribers at year-end included 8.82 million Dish customers and 2.47 million Sling customers.

The numbers represented an improvement over the network’s 194,000 loss in Q4 2019. But it was a reversal from Q3 2020’s 116,000 gain, when Dish lost 87,000, but Sling added 203,000.

The network, which entered retail wireless last year through its $1.4-billion acquisition of Boost Mobile, also reported a loss of 363,000 retail wireless subscribers in Q4 (for a total of 9.06 million), versus a loss of 212,000 in Q3.

Despite the subscriber losses, the network saw revenue rise to $4.56 billion, net income rise to $733 million, and diluted earnings per share rise to $1.24, from $3.24 billion, $389 million and $0.69, respectively, in the year-ago period.

Late last year, Dish signed a multi-year agreement with Nexstar Media Group for carriage on local TV stations and the WGN America network.