Comcast loses over 12% of cable subscribers in the last year

Cable TV providers like Comcast continue to lose their battle against streaming as more and more subscribers decide to cut the cord. With the popularity of streaming services rising, more people see streaming as a cheaper option to fill their niche needs.

Technology insider website Techdirt reports that over the last 12 months, Comcast has lost 12.6% of its video subscribers. Furthermore, over the last quarter, Comcast lost 520,000 pay-TV subscribers. That is over just three months. The company now sits at 14.98 million subscribers.

Consequently, Spectrum is about to pass Comcast as the biggest traditional cable company in the United States. However, even Spectrum is on the downturn. In the same timeframe that Comcast lost over half a million pay-TV subscribers, Charter Spectrum lost 241,000. All traditional cable companies are losing subscribers.

Over that time, Comcast subscribers did lose their included access to Peacock. Interestingly, the company did report further growth with the paid streaming service. Peacock went up by 2 million subscribers to bring the total subscriber count to 24 million. However, the expensive TV bundles that Comcast relied on are drying up.

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Comcast cable subscribers dropping out hurts company’s profits

Techdirt noted that the main money-maker for Comcast was its broadband. While Comcast does traditionally hold a monopoly on that, even its broadband control is leaking out. 5G wireless options are becoming more standard, making Comcast less controlling on the broadband side.

However, for pay-TV purposes and soccer coverage, Comcast is dropping. Some estimates state 8,164 cable customers cancel their subscriptions every day. This only demonstrates that streaming is taking over. For soccer fans, this is nothing new. Live broadcasts and studio coverage are often exclusive to streaming services, including the aforementioned Peacock.

For example, the opening weekend in the Premier League heavily features Peacock. For reference, seven of the 10 games in the opening weekend of the Premier League are exclusive to Peacock. Furthermore, the NBC game is simulcast on Peacock. Evidently, NBC has no fear in propping up viewers to Peacock for the Premier League.

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