Philadelphia-based Comcast saw its revenue and profits rise last quarter, partly due to the success of the hit musical Wicked, but it has continued to lose broadband customers, writes Patience Haggin for The Wall Street Journal.
The cable and entertainment giant lost another 139,000 broadband customers in three months, shrinking its base of 32 million subscribers. The decline was steeper than the company’s December forecast and worse than analysts had expected.
The company attributed the losses to competition from Verizon, T-Mobile, and other providers now offering home internet service. However, unit revenue still increased as remaining customers paid higher prices for internet service.
Overall, Comcast saw its revenue and adjusted earnings rise by more than expected. Net profit reached almost $4.8 billion, partly due to a one-time tax benefit.
Peacock subscribers stayed flat at 36 million but revenue rose 28 percent to 1.3 billion following a $2 price increase on its monthly subscription plans. The operating loss for NBCUniversal’s streaming service narrowed.
Meanwhile, NBCUniversal’s film studio saw its revenue go up to almost $3.3 billion as Wicked became the highest-grossing film adaptation of a Broadway musical.
Read more about Comcast and how it fared during the last quarter in The Wall Street Journal.
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