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Industry Moves
Helio Shakes Up Execs; Sky Dayton Moves To Chairman; Sull Upped To CEO

@ D: Sky Dayton, CEO, Helio and Founder, EarthlinkUpdated: Presenting the move as routine, MNVO Helio just announced that Sky Dayton has moved to non-executive chairman of the board, leaving the post of CEO for Wohnee Sull, who had been president and COO. Dayton had been CEO of the SK Telecom-Earthlink (NSDQ: ELNK) joint venture for three years. Prior to Helio, Sull was an SK Telecom (NYSE: SKM) exec. It is the latest in a series of changes as Helio navigates to avoid becoming yet another wreck on the MVNO shoals. This past August, the start-up revamped its field sales operation and reduced its HQ staff by about 5 percent.

The release points out that Dayton has a track record of turning over day-to-day ops after several years at the helm and that essentially the same team will still be running the company. Dayton’s statement: “Helio has reached a point in its development where I feel the timing is right for this change. ... As we have for the past three years, the two of us will continue to define Helio’s direction and future.”

At the same time, Helio announced some stats for its “nearly 200,000 subs.” (Yes, we know it’s a distraction from the main news but, heck, they’re also interesting.) A few that stand out:

—“an average revenue per user (ARPU) over $85, well above the industry average of under $50 and closed 2007, the company’s first full year since launch, with a revenue run rate of over $240M based on December actuals.”

—Every month, 60 percent of Helio “brand members” access MySpace via their Helio handsets, averaging nearly 500 page views

—Nearly all—95 percent—of Helio uses access the web through their handsets.

Rafat adds: “This is the final indication that SK Telecom has taken over, pretty much. Though the company line is Dayton is a serial entrepreneur and is moving on; SK Telecom is now the majority shareholder and it will be interesting to see how closely it aligns this with SK Telecom America. SK Telecom has pledged to support Helio with up to $270 million as well as to invest $110 million in an online venture of its own. Some have speculated that Helio will become SK Telecom—and putting Sull in charge will only add to that.

You can catch up on Helio via our archives.

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Jan 28, 2008 4:14 PM ET
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Posted In: Industry Moves, Companies, Helio, SK Telecom, sky dayton, wohnee sull

  • Mike Gauba

    500 pages a month per user is very impressibe but bIKEefore we jump to any conclusions, what we should ask Helio are the following questions

    1. Are these pages Internet or those specifically designed/mapped for small screens
    2. How many of these pages are accessed from mailing and MySpace applications or how many pages does general browsing contribute to it?
    3. Are these pages downloaded via PC or accessed using a mobile service

    The answers to these questions will tell us if there is a furture for mobile based browsing - which a large number of technology companies and service providers are targeting through mobile phones.

    Helio then says that 60% of its "brand members" (which I take it to be their normal users) access MySpace every month. Which is again a very impressive number. Again, before we jump to any conclusions, we should ask them

    How many times does each user visit Myspace in a month?
    Does it visit on its own or is it pulled to visit by dangaling a carrot?
    Does it visit using a mobile or a PC?

    I very much look forward to answers to these questions from Helio

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