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Phone company AT&T ( T ) shed TV subscribers for the first time in 2015, says a Leichtmann Research Group report, but AT&T’s acquisition of satellite broadcaster DirecTV will be a difference maker this year, says AT&T’s chief financial officer. AT&T acquired DirecTV in July and has been rolling out new bundles of wireless and video services. Pay-TV providers overall lost 345,000 customers in 2015, says LRG. AT&T’s landline U-verse service accounted for most, shedding 303,000 subscribers, LRG says. DirecTV added 167,000 subscribers in 2015, thanks to a strong December quarter. In Q4, DirecTV added 214,000 U.S. subscribers, but AT&T lost 240,000 U-verse landline TV customers. AT&T says its new wireless-video bundles are gaining traction. “We are expecting video net adds this year,” John Stephens, AT&T’s CFO, said at a Deutsche Bank conference on Wednesday. Verizon Communications ‘ ( VZ ) FiOS landline TV service gained 178,000 subscribers in 2015, says LRG while cable TV companies combined lost 345,000. Comcast ( CMCSA ), the nation’s biggest cable TV firm, lost 36,000 video subscribers last year but in Q4 added 89,000, marking its best quarter in nine years. Comcast’s Xfinity set-top boxes have provided a boost. Some analysts forecast that Comcast will be net positive in 2016. At a Morgan Stanley conference on March 1, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts signaled that it could have a strong Q1, 2016. Scalper1 News
Scalper1 News