Cable Just Had Its Best Broadband Customer Growth in 13 Years: Leichtman

The top eight U.S. cable companies added just over 1.23 million high-speed internet customers in the first quarter, led by Charter Communications (582,000 additional customers) and Comcast (up 477,000 users).

For the cable business, it was the best customer performance since Q1 2007.

The data comes from a quarterly report published by Leichtman Research Group (LRG).

Overall, the top cable operators have around 69.2 million broadband subscribers in the U.S., which accounts for about two-thirds of the wireline broadband market.

Cable operators continue to hemorrhage video users—a fact that will be once again driven home Thursday, when LRG publishes its quarterly look at the telecom-based pay TV business.

But the calculus for the cable business has clearly changed, with video now relegated to the role of "loss leader." For instance, Comcast’s top cable TV executive, Dave Watson, told investors this week that the company’s Flex OTT device—which is given out for free to Comcast broadband-only users as an enticement—has now reached 1 million deployments.

Overall, LRG said the top 16 telecom companies controlling 96% of the U.S. wireline internet business added 1.165 million customers in Q1, with “telco” operators like AT&T continuing to shed legacy DSL customers.

It was the best cumulative performance for the wireline broadband industry in five years. 

Daniel Frankel

Daniel Frankel is the managing editor of Next TV, an internet publishing vertical focused on the business of video streaming. A Los Angeles-based writer and editor who has covered the media and technology industries for more than two decades, Daniel has worked on staff for publications including E! Online, Electronic Media, Mediaweek, Variety, paidContent and GigaOm. You can start living a healthier life with greater wealth and prosperity by following Daniel on Twitter today!