NetZero Loses in Quarter Despite Record Revenue

NetZero of Westlake Village, a provider of free Internet access, reported revenue of $12.2 million for its second fiscal quarter ended Dec. 31, 10 times more than the $122,000 reported for the comparable quarter in 1998.

On a sequential basis, this was a 59% increase from revenue of $7.7 million reported for the September 1999 quarter.

Despite the record revenue, however, the company’s net loss was $24.6 million for the December quarter, versus a loss of $1.8 million for the year-ago quarter and a $14.9-million loss for the September 1999 quarter. On a per-share basis, the net loss for the December quarter was 27 cents.

NetZero announced earlier this month that its registered user base had reached 3 million. During its second fiscal quarter, NetZero added nearly 1 million registered users, a record for the company.

“The results we’ve reported this quarter clearly demonstrate the strength of NetZero’s business model,” said Mark R. Goldston, chairman and chief executive.