iPhone Margin Munch
AT&T's net income for the fourth quarter was down 23.3 percent to $2.4 billion compared with the same period last year, and earnings per share was $0.41 in the fourth quarter compared with $0.51 last year.
The margin drop is in part thanks to the 3G iPhone, which AT&T heavily subsidizes. While there was sequential improvement in wireless operating income before depreciation and amortization (OIBDA) in the fourth quarter -- OIBDA was 35.8, up from 33.5 percent in the third quarter -- AT&T said there was about $450 million of margin pressure associated with the 3G iPhone in the fourth quarter.
— Michelle Donegan, European Editor, Unstrung