Local government-owned M-I Connection tried to spin a 9.4 increase in Q1 revenue — driven by about 1600 more voice accounts over Q1 2009 — as the news from its latest financials. Unfortunately a 6.5 percent increase in expenses helped to push the broadband provider to a $1.7m. loss for the quarter, a 23 percent increase in red ink.

Total unique subscribers fell slightly to 15,235 while the number of subs to various services increased by 9 percent to 24,466. But at the same time the number of truck rolls jumped by 16 percent, indicating that as M-I adds services it is incurring more service calls at an even greater rate. This again underscores our fundamental point about the insanity of buying, upgrading, and then attempting to maintain the old beat down Adelphia franchise for some $92m. Town officials misjudged this one badly and the $576,000 that Mooresville and Davidson are taking from their taxpayers today to give to M-I this year is just the start of a trend.

Also keep in mind that M-I started off with 15,826 subscribers and projected it would have over 17,000 subs by now. Even more omnious is the trend away from any kind of land line for residential accounts, as that service is being usurped by functional 24/7 cell connections by precisely the demographic M-I is targeting to upsell — young apartment dwellers.

In short, M-I’s time may have passed before it ever started.