Comcast (CMCSA) , the second-largest media company in the world, is not finding any relief from a startling change in customer behavior, despite recent efforts to reverse the trend. Amid this challenge, the company’s CEO is calling out the source of the issue.
In Comcast’s first-quarter earnings report for 2025, it revealed that its net income declined by 12.4% year over year. Even though its domestic broadband revenue increased by 1.7% due to higher average rates, Comcast lost 199,000 broadband subscribers, which is a steeper loss than analysts predicted.
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The loss in internet customers comes after Comcast, which offers internet under the name Xfinity, announced in December that it will increase prices for its Xfinity services this year due to “strategic investments” to make its network “smarter, faster and more reliable.”
Related: Comcast hopes to win back fleeing customers with generous offer
It also recently reduced Xfinity’s monthly autopay discount from $5 to $2 for customers who use credit and debit cards to pay their bills.
Comcast is trying to win back customers.
Image source: Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Comcast CEO gets to the bottom of the issue
During an earnings call on April 25, Comcast President Mike Kavanaugh said that the company has identified two reasons why an increasing number of customers are choosing to switch internet providers.
“One is price transparency and predictability, and the other is the level of ease of doing business with us,” said Kavanaugh.
Comcast Chief Financial Officer Jason Armstrong also flagged during the call that the company is facing “intense” competition, especially from fixed wireless internet providers.
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Fixed wireless internet provides high-speed connection through the use of radio signals instead of cables. It can provide internet access to remote or underserved areas where internet through cable is not available. It is also usually offered at a cheaper price than traditional internet services.
“I would tell you that the newer competitor in the last few years has obviously been fixed wireless,” said Armstrong. “They’re adding 1,000,000 subscribers per quarter, so that’s sort of the competitive intensity that we’re seeing that’s sort of incremental. We are competing aggressively with it.”
Companies such as Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile all offer fixed wireless internet. Armstrong said that many consumers are leaning towards this service because it has a simple “pricing construct” and “ease of doing business” that has resonated well with consumers.
Comcast switches course in order to win back customers
Comcast plans to focus on developing these two qualities going forward, making incremental changes in order to win back customers.
Just last week, Comcast announced a five-year price lock for Xfinity plans. Prices for internet plans range between $55 and $105 a month, and they don’t require an annual contract, which allows customers to cancel anytime without penalty.
Customers who enroll in an internet plan with the price-lock guarantee also receive unlimited data and an unlimited Xfinity Mobile line at no extra cost for a year.
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The month before, Comcast even increased Xfinity Internet speeds by 50% to 100% for more than 20 million customers for free.
While Comcast focuses on improving its service and providing better pricing transparency, many consumers across the country are seeing higher costs for internet service, which is pushing them to make tough decisions.
According to a new survey from CNET, 63% of U.S. adults saw the monthly price of their home internet service increase last year. On average, they paid $195 more for internet service in 2024 than they did in 2023.
Despite paying higher prices for internet, 51% of the respondents in the survey said they still experienced unreliable connectivity. These price hikes even pushed one in five U.S. adults to either downgrade their service, switch internet providers or cancel their service altogether.Â
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