April 20, 2024

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SK Telecom said Oct. 31 its third-quarter net profit plunged due to equity losses of its chipmaking subsidiary, while its operating profit remained mostly unchanged from the previous year.

Its net income tumbled 73.9 percent to 274.4 billion won ($236 million) in the July-September period compared with a year ago, the nation’s largest mobile carrier said in a regulatory briefing. 

The losses were mainly from equity ties with chipmaking affiliate SK hynix. The telecom operator holds a controlling 20 percent stake in the major chip maker, which posted lackluster earnings in the third quarter.

SKT said its sales gained 8.95 percent on-year to 4.6 trillion won in the third quarter, led by solid profit growth from its media business.

Its operating profit slipped 0.66 percent to 302.1 billion won over the period due to increased spending for 5G service marketing and infrastructure buildup, the firm said.

SKT said it generated 2.5 trillion won of revenue from the mobile business, mostly the same from a year earlier, saying it had attracted some 1.54 million 5G subscribers as of the end of September.

Revenue of the media business gained 14 percent on-year to 333.7 billion won in the third quarter, led by strong internet protocol television and ultra-high definition business.

By Ram Garikipati and newswires (ram@heraldcorp.com)