Verizon Wireless adds 2 million customers

Verizon Wireless, in advance of its fourth quarter 2005 earnings call planned for this Thursday, today announced that net wireless subscriber additions for the quarter amounted to 2 million, an increase of 20.5% over the fourth quarter of 2004. The figure also was an industry record for a single quarter, the company claimed in its statement.

During the full of year 2005, Verizon Wireless added a net of more than 7.5 million customers, up 19.5% over the previous year. The company had 51.3 million customers nationwide at the end of 2005. Fourth quarter 2005 is the company's 14th consecutive quarter of double-digit, year-over-year quarterly net add growth, and the seventh consecutive quarter in which it added more than 1.5 million net customers.

Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone Group plc, which earlier today issued a trading update that included the proportionate share of Verizon Wireless net customer additions. Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin also reportedly said this morning that Vodafone is not interested in selling off its 45% stake in Verizon Wireless, despite pressure from some investors to do so.