Comcast Posts Profit, Revenue Gains

PHILADELPHIA: First-quarter results from Comcast Corporation show a 5-percent increase in revenues to $8.4 billion, and a 5-percent profit increase to $772 million.

Brian L. Roberts, the chairman and CEO of Comcast, said: "Our results for the first quarter mark a solid start to 2009, demonstrating the underlying strength of our subscription businesses and our ability to continue to manage effectively in a challenging environment…. The continued strength of our financial position has enabled us to maintain investment in our businesses and execute on our strategic initiatives. Looking ahead, we remain focused on delivering superior products to our customers, strengthening our competitive position and building value for our shareholders over the long term."

Revenues from the Comcast Cable platform increased by 5 percent to $8.3 billion, reflecting customer upgrades to digital and advanced video services and gains in its high-speed Internet and telephony services, partially offset by video customer losses and reduced ad spend. ARPU gained by 8 percent to $115.27. At the end of the period, Comcast had a total of 46.1 million customers.

The Programming Segment saw its revenues remain stable at $361 million, largely as a result of the soft ad market.