NEW YORK – Comcast Corp.’s larger-than-expected subscriber losses for the second quarter are “negligible,” the cable giant’s financial chief said Wednesday.
Comcast lost 96,000 basic subscribers during the three-month period ending in June. It had expected to lose about 50,000 to 75,000, but said it lost more to satellite competition.
Speaking at an investment conference in Washington, D.C., that was broadcast over the Internet, chief financial officer John Alchin said the company expects to lose 50,000 to 75,000 basic subscribers in the upcoming second quarter.
Alchin assured the audience that such losses were nothing to worry about considering the company’s large subscriber base.
Philadelphia-based Comcast, the largest cable operator in the United States, has said it expects to finish the year with 21.5 million basic subscribers.
The second quarter is generally the worst for cable companies as students and retirees with winter homes return home for the summer. But many cable companies saw particularly weak second quarters as satellite companies have ramped up advertising and services.
Alchin said Comcast is doing a lot more on the advertising front, promoting its high-definition offerings during the Olympics, for example. Alchin said he expects 200,000 new subscribers will come from converted customers.
“There is growing momentum out there that our product is way more competitive,” he said, citing cable’s ability to offer more high-definition channels and video on demand.
Also during his appearance, Alchin stressed the company’s increased size, which has helped lower programming technology costs as well as increase advertising revenue.
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