Thursday 25 July 2019 2:15 pm

Comcast grows revenue and profit thanks to broadband boost

Comcast has posted a rise in revenue and profit for the second quarter as an increase in broadband customers helped offset a decline in its TV business.

The US media group posted revenue of $26.9bn (£21.5bn) in the three months to the end of June, up 24 per cent on the same period last year.

Comcast also boosted earnings to 78 cents per share, ahead of analysts’ forecasts.

The firm, which bought Sky last year for £30bn, has been battling against the rise of streaming services such as Netflix, which are drawing customers away from its traditional cable TV offering.

Comcast said it lost 224,000 video customers in the quarter, more than the 121,000 it lost in the previous three months.

But this was offset by a 9.4 per cent increase in revenue from the firm’s high-speed internet business, which gained 209,000 subscribers over the quarter.

The figures were less encouraging for Sky, however, which saw revenue slip just over three per cent to $4.8bn.

Sky, which earlier this year released hit show Chernobyl, saw content revenue soar thanks to original programming and sports rights. Despite this, advertising revenue dropped 10 per cent over the period.

Revenue at Comcast’s NBC Universal division also slipped marginally. NBC recently announced it will pull episodes of the US version of The Office from Netflix and place them of its own streaming service, which is set to launch next year.

But disappointing performance from the group’s cinema releases also weighed on revenue, though Comcast blamed the strength of releases such as Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom in the comparative period last year.

“I am very pleased with our terrific second quarter results and the continued, successful execution of our strategy,” said Comcast chairman and chief executive Brian Roberts.

“Our company’s consistent, profitable growth is fuelled by our leading scale in direct customer relationships and premier content.”

Image credit: Sky