Comcast Loses Basic Subs, Adds Broadband Users

Comcast Corp. net income fell as more basic cable subscribers defected, yet first-quarter sales rose on high-speed Internet and VoIP adoption.

The nation’s largest cable operator also is gaining traction in the business services sector.

On the whole, Brian Roberts, chairman and CEO of Comcast, told analysts on Thursday he was “pleased” with his company’s results and said the year is “off to a good start.”

Comcast netted $732 million in income during the first quarter of 2008, down from $837 million during the year-ago period. Revenue, conversely, rose from $7.4 billion to $8.4 billion. The cableco lost 57,000 basic video customers – less than the 73,000 analysts polled by Reuters had projected – to telco and satellite competitors. That’s compared to the addition of 83,000 basic video users a year ago.

Still, Comcast added 494,000 digital cable users; 16 million of its customers now have digital service, the company said.

The company added nearly as many broadband users in the first quarter – 492,000, all told. Sixty-eight percent of those new subscribers converted from DSL, Comcast reported.

Digital voice, or VoIP, subscribers, also increased. Take rates grew 11.5 percent to 5.1 million; approximately 80 percent of Comcast’s VoIP users bundle their services.

Meanwhile, Comcast is making headway among businesses as cablecos get serious about competing against telcos and CLECs for SMB share. Expenses in the business services nearly doubled as Comcast ramped up marketing, but the company didn’t provide financial breakdowns, likely since the focus is so new.

Comcast stocks were up 3.89 percent at $21.35 during late-morning trading on Thursday.

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