Comcast announced disappointing results for the fourth quarter, reporting a loss of 139,000 broadband subscribers. This setback, however, was somewhat mitigated by the remarkable success of Peacock's film, Wicked, which has achieved over $700 million at the global box office, making it the highest-grossing film based on a Broadway musical.
Comcast Corporation President Mike Cavanagh acknowledged the intense competition within the broadband market, stating that conditions “remain intense, dynamic, and varied across our footprint and customer segments” with no immediate signs of easing. Despite this challenge, residential domestic broadband revenue still saw a 3% increase.
Comcast is implementing new pricing and packaging strategies in markets offering multi-gigabit symmetrical speeds. This initiative will bundle wireless and internet services, featuring faster upload speeds and simplified, all-inclusive pricing. The company's EBITDA experienced a 10% growth to $8.8 billion for the fourth quarter and a 1% increase to $38.1 billion for the full year.
Regarding the planned spin-off of its channels business, Cavanagh emphasized that these brands are “leaders in genre-based entertainment, sports, and news”. He also expressed openness to partnerships or bundling opportunities, stating, “We’ll consider anything… but I think the point of it in partnerships is what do you bring to the table and getting our assets very tightly focused around a strong strategy for Peacock, I think, enables us to be a good partner, any partnerships that may or may not come to pass.”