Pre-tax profits jumped more than 80% - largely the result of cost cuts - while reported revenue fell 6.2%. The firm downgraded its organic growth outlook for the full year.
Fragmented sports media is creating headaches for fans and opportunities for advertisers.
Ad recall and viewer engagement have reached new lows in today's second-screening landscape.
"Programmers have continued to impose and enforce strict bundling requirements through exorbitant minimum penetration rates," writes DirecTV Chief Content Officer Rob Thun.
Amid tense negotiations and the blackout of networks/stations, Charter and Disney are each aggressively pushing alternatives for video consumers left in the lurch as the new fall TV season is about to
start.
An estimated 1.90 million subscribers cut the cord in the first three months of 2021.