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T-Mobile US brags of cash pile this quarter as biz gambles pay off

But still soaked in red ink

T-Mobile US credited a series of risky new business strategies in helping the company to turn in another quarter of solid revenues.

The telco said that it pulled in more than one million new customers over the three-month period, helping to power its sales to $6.69bn from the year-ago $4.89bn. Overall, the biz recorded a $36m loss in the third quarter, compared with $7.74bn in Q3 2012 when it copped a goodwill impairment charge of $8.1bn.

Company executives used this year's strong third-quarter report as proof the firm's strategic decisions were right and that its "Un-Carrier" campaign paid off. The effort saw the introduction of policies such as free-worldwide roaming support and the elimination of up-front payment plans.

The shift looks to be paying dividends at least in the short term. T-Mobile US reported that in the quarter its postpaid subscription program netted some 648,000 new customers.

The carrier also benefited from factors such as the September rollout of the iPhone 5s and 5c, a launch that helped the company net 5.6 million smartphone sales, and the integration of punters from newly acquired MetroPCS, a move that helped to boost T-Mobile's subscriber base by some 1.5 million customers.

"T-Mobile’s Un-carrier approach is resonating with consumers," T-Mobile CEO John Legere declared.

"We added more than one million customers and led the industry with 643,000 branded postpaid phone additions because we are fixing the things that drive customers crazy."

The boost comes in the run-up to what is usually a bumper season for mobile manufacturers and carriers as the flood of holiday shopping buoys sales figures. While some analysts have warned of looming supply chain problems, handset makers are looking to once again top sales records in the coming months. ®

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