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posted by takyon on Thursday May 07 2015, @12:25AM   Printer-friendly
from the this-merger-was-cheap-and-easy dept.

Cable Cutters Boost Comcast Profits

Comcast has revealed that for the first time in company history they have more broadband customers than they do TV customers. In a story covered by just about everybody, Comcast Cable President Neil Smit said on a conference call that in the current period "broadband [customers] have in fact surpassed video."

Comcast reported $2 billion in profits for the first quarter, a 10 percent increase over the same period a year ago. The improved earnings were largely built on robust growth in its high-speed Internet business. Revenue increased 2.6 percent to nearly $18 billion. Profit and sales topped analysts' estimates as the broadband division posted its strongest revenue growth in more than four years. Comcast continues to generate significantly more revenue from its video business than from broadband. Video revenue was $5.3 billion for the quarter, compared with $3 billion for high-speed Internet. But the rapid growth of broadband more than offset a loss of 8,000 video customers in the first quarter, which compared with the addition of 24,000 cable-TV subscribers a year earlier.

However, there may be more "cable cutting" going on than appears at first glance. According to the Wall Street Journal [paywall]:

The popularity of "Skinny Bundles" offerings poses a threat to TV channels, because any skinny bundles necessarily leave some channels out. The trend of "cord-shaving"—people downgrading to cheaper TV subscriptions with fewer channels—is closely watched in the industry, as it has contributed to declines in the reach of many major channels into American homes.

The US is moving to on-demand streaming, a trend we've all suspected. This is a game changer, because it changes the way the industry is financed, how programming is developed, and sold. It suggests more TVs will be "smart" TVs in the future, and there will be even faster broadband connections.

Personally I suspect it signals that people are unwilling to sit through an ever increasing number of commercials. That leaves unsaid what financing arrangements will prevail in the future. Would the patronage proponents actually see a real large scale trial? Or would pirates simply have a field day? And, yes, Frojack is still worried that we don't have enough IP bandwidth to support this. But apparently, that's just me.

After Merger Failure, Comcast to Boost Customer Service

In an article in Variety, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts promoted the promotional storefront Studio Xfinity concept and denied the company's customer service reputation had an impact on the regulatory block of the merger with Time Warner Cable. Nevertheless, Comcast will be adding thousands of new customer service positions in three new contact centers:

While Roberts made a point of noting that customer service metrics have been improving for some time, opponents of Comcast's proposed merger with Time Warner Cable hammered both companies for their reputations with consumers. Comcast and TW Cable scuttled the merger after it became clear that federal regulators would move to block it, but Roberts said that he was uncertain whether customer service issues factored into the government's thinking.

"In the end, I don't know," he said. "You would have to ask the decision makers, but I think irrespective we have been on this journey for a while. Probably my own view, deep down, it didn't. It wasn't determinative." [President and CEO of Comcast Cable Neil] Smit said, "Irrespective of deal or no deal, this is the right thing to do for the business. We are very committed to it for that reason. It is the right thing to do."

Comcast also will open three new customer support centers in Albuquerque, N.M.; Spokane, Wash.; and Tucson, Ariz., with 2,000 employees. Other features include an Uber-like feature that enables customers to track the location and arrival of their technician in real time and then rate the experience — a move to try to turn around perceptions of "the cable guy."

SoylentNews covered the fall-through of the merger less than two weeks ago.

 
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  • (Score: 2) by frojack on Thursday May 07 2015, @01:16AM

    by frojack (1554) on Thursday May 07 2015, @01:16AM (#179731) Journal

    Mod parent up. (See, I do read AC's once in a while.)

    With broadband, they my have some upstream costs for their backbone connections, but when you are the size of Comcast you usually own much of those as well.

    But studios and the TV networks demand payments (even while feeding you advertising) from cable companies. So often the cable companies repackage shows, squeezing additional ads in.

    Oh, and kudos to Takyon for bundling these two stories into one. I worried when I saw two in the queue, as I realize not everybody gives a rip about Comcast. Specially our Euro Soylentils.

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  • (Score: 3, Funny) by takyon on Thursday May 07 2015, @01:20AM

    by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Thursday May 07 2015, @01:20AM (#179734) Journal

    Oh, and kudos to Takyon for bundling these two stories into one. I worried when I saw two in the queue, as I realize not everybody gives a rip about Comcast. Specially our Euro Soylentils.

    Mergers can work.

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