Comcast reels in 300 thousand broadband subscribers as growth slows

Comcast raked in 300,000 broadband net additions in Q3 2021, a figure that was less than half the number it added in 2020 and lower than the pre-pandemic gain it posted in the comparable period of 2019. The operator added 633,000 subscribers during the pandemic in Q3 2020 and 379,000 broadband customers in Q3 2019. Comcast CFO Michael Cavanagh previously warned that the operator expected net additions to slow in Q3. Comcast Cable CEO Dave Watson pointed to a reduction in growth from the lower-income segment, noting traditional wireless carriers have been “very active” in the Federal Communications Commission’s Emergency Broadband Benefit subsidy program recently. However, Watson insisted “our broadband net adds are still very healthy and our churn remains at record lows, certainly for Q3,” though did not provide a figure for the latter metric. He added full year 2021 net additions are expected to come in around 2019 levels. Comcast reeled in 1.4 million broadband net additions in 2019 and thus far in 2021 has added 1.115 million, meaning it would need to add 285,000 broadband subscribers in Q4 to hit its target. The operator’s Q3 broadband net additions included 281,000 residential customers and 19,000 business customers. It lost 408,000 video customers and 158,000 voice customers but added a record 285,000 wireless lines.