Competition Rises for AT&T, as Does 3rd-Quarter Profit

T-Mobile USA, the underdog among the four big American phone carriers, has made aggressive moves to shake up the wireless industry this year — and AT&T in particular. But AT&T’s results have not budged.

AT&T, the second-largest American carrier after Verizon Wireless, reported profit of $3.8 billion in the third quarter, up from $3.6 billion in the same quarter a year ago. AT&T said that it added 363,000 contract subscribers — the most valuable type of customer — in the quarter, about double what it added last year. Also, subscribers left AT&T at a slower rate than they had before. Churn, the rate at which subscribers leave, was 1.07 percent, versus 1.08 percent in the same quarter a year ago. AT&T also said it sold 6.7 million smartphones, a record for the third quarter. It added 655,000 subscribers to its high-speed Internet service and 265,000 to its cable TV offering. Revenue climbed 2.2 percent to $32.2 billion.