Brazil’s largest mobile phone operator by subscribers, Vivo Participacoes, today reported its financial results for the three months ended 30 September 2009, showing that net profits more than doubled year-on-year as a result of lower operating costs and financial expenses and a significant increase in data services revenue. The cellco said net profit reached BRL340 million (USD196 million) in the three-month period, compared with BRL133.9 million a year ago, as the costs of goods sold (including mobile phone equipment), dropped for the second straight quarter. Overall operational expenses and costs dipped 1.2% y-o-y and its provisions for unpaid bills fell 58%, it said in a securities filing. Meanwhile, net revenues climbed marginally from BRL4.08 billion to BRL4.09 billion, driven by data revenue sales which jumped 40%. Average revenue per user (ARPU) fell 10.2% year-on-year however, to BRL26.4, although Vivo was keen to point out the figure was actually up 0.4% quarter-on-quarter. EBITDA rose 6% from BRL1.32 billion to BRL1.40 billion, it said. At the end of September Vivo had close to 49 million mobile customers, up 15.5% on the same time in 2008, and the churn rate was trimmed from 2.6% to 2.5% it said.