AT&T reported a 30 percent increase in second quarter net income as wireless data revenues grew to $2.5 billion, up 52 percent compared to year-ago totals. In all, AT&T posted Q2 net income of $3.77 billion, or 63 cents a share, up from $2.9 billion, or 47 cents a share a year earlier. The telecom giant's AT&T Mobility unit enjoyed revenue growth of 15.8 percent to $12 billion, buoyed by subscriber gains and data growth credited to increased smartphone penetration. AT&T's retail postpaid subscriber ARPU grew 3.5 percent versus Q2 of 2007.
According to AT&T, its wireless data surge reflects continued demand for mobile web access, email and messaging--most notably, mobile web revenues more than doubled compared to year-ago totals. Email, messaging and data access all delivered growth in excess of 50 percent as well, with text messaging volume tripling compared to the second quarter of 2007 and MMS volume leaping more than 170 percent. Roughly 18 percent of AT&T subscribers are now equipped with a smartphone or integrated device, up from 8 percent a year ago. The operator adds that in the two weeks following the July 11 launch of Apple's iPhone 3G, sales were nearly double what the original iPhone sold in its own debut last summer.

For more on AT&T's Q2 results:
- read this release [1]

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