Comcast Corporation is a global media and technology company.
The company reaches customers, viewers and guests worldwide through the connectivity and platforms services the company provides and the content and experiences the company creates. The company delivers broadband, wireless, video and voice services primarily under the Xfinity, Comcast Business, Sky and NOW brands; produces, distributes and streams leading entertainment, sports and news through brands including NBC, Telemundo, Univers...
Comcast Corporation is a global media and technology company.
The company reaches customers, viewers and guests worldwide through the connectivity and platforms services the company provides and the content and experiences the company creates. The company delivers broadband, wireless, video and voice services primarily under the Xfinity, Comcast Business, Sky and NOW brands; produces, distributes and streams leading entertainment, sports and news through brands including NBC, Telemundo, Universal, Peacock and Sky; and owns and operates Universal theme parks.
The company operates two primary businesses:
Connectivity & Platforms: Contains the company’s broadband, wireless, video and wireline voice businesses in the United States, the United Kingdom and Italy (collectively, the ‘Connectivity & Platforms markets’). Also includes the operations of the company’s Sky-branded entertainment television networks in the United Kingdom and Italy. The company’s Connectivity & Platforms business is reported in two segments, Residential Connectivity & Platforms and Business Services Connectivity.
Content & Experiences: Contains the company’s media and entertainment businesses that produce and distribute entertainment, sports, news and other content for global audiences and that own and operate theme parks and attractions in the United States and Asia. The company’s Content & Experiences business is reported in three segments, Media, Studios and Theme Parks.
In November 2024, the company announced its intention to create a new independent publicly traded company (‘SpinCo’) primarily consisted of a strong portfolio of domestic cable television networks within the company’s Media segment, including USA Network, E!, Syfy, MSNBC, CNBC, Oxygen and the Golf Channel along with complementary digital assets, including Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, GolfNow and SportsEngine, through a tax-free spin-off (the ‘Spin-off’). The company is targeting to complete the Spin-off by the end of 2025.
Businesses
Connectivity & Platforms Business
Residential Connectivity & Platforms Segment
The company’s Residential Connectivity & Platforms segment primarily includes:
Residential broadband and wireless services (collectively, ‘Residential Connectivity’)
Residential and business video services, Sky-branded entertainment television networks and advertising
The company offers services to customers individually and as bundled services at a discounted rate.
Residential Connectivity
Broadband
The company offers broadband services in the United States over the company’s hybrid fiber-optic and coaxial (‘HFC’) network, as well as through direct fiber-to-the-premises connections for certain customers, and internationally in the United Kingdom and Italy by leveraging networks owned by third-party telecommunications providers.
The company’s domestic broadband offerings have a range of service levels, including up to gigabit-plus downstream speeds that the company offers across nearly its entire footprint. As part of the company’s low-income broadband adoption program, the company offers qualifying domestic customers broadband services at discounted rates through the company’s Internet Essentials and Internet Essentials Plus services, with downstream speeds of up to 75 and 100 megabits per second, respectively. In 2024, the company began offering prepaid domestic broadband services with downstream speeds of up to 200 megabits per second marketed under the NOW brand. The company also offers monthly access to its network of Wi-Fi hotspots.
The company continues to evolve and enhance its domestic network capabilities, including deploying technology in select markets that will enable the company to deliver multigigabit symmetrical broadband speeds (i.e., comparable upstream and downstream speeds), as described in the Network and Technology discussion below.
The company offers Xumo Stream Box (formerly Flex) devices to the company’s domestic customers. The Xumo Stream Box provides access to and integration of streaming content and music from certain internet-based apps, including direct-to-consumer streaming services (‘DTC streaming services’) such as Peacock, Disney+ and Netflix, and certain pay-per-view and video on demand programming that is available over the internet. The company also offers certain bundled DTC streaming services to its broadband customers. The company earns commission revenue from the sale of DTC streaming services when sold with the company’s broadband services or through its video platforms, including X1 and Sky Q.
The company had 250,000 or more domestic residential broadband customers as of December 31, 2024.
The company’s international broadband services primarily include fiber-to-the-cabinet offerings, and increasingly fiber-to-the-premises offerings.
As part of the company’s domestic and international broadband services, the company offers to customers its advanced, proprietary wireless gateways that combine an internet modem with a Wi-Fi router to deliver reliable internet speeds and enhanced coverage through an in-and-out-of-home Wi-Fi network. In addition, customers may personalize and manage their Wi-Fi network and connected devices with the company’s mobile apps and online portal. Broadband customers have access to its expanding network of secure Wi-Fi hotspots.
Wireless
The company offers wireless services for wireless handsets, tablets and smart watches (‘wireless devices’) to residential customers in the United States and the United Kingdom using mobile virtual network operator (‘MVNO’) rights. The company’s domestic wireless services are offered over Verizon’s wireless network and the company’s existing network of secure residential, outdoor and business Wi-Fi hotspots, and are offered initially only as part of the company’s bundled service offerings to customers that subscribe to the company’s qualifying broadband services.
Wireless customers may activate multiple lines per account. The company offers domestic customers services on an unlimited data plan, on shared data plans or per gigabyte of data used. In 2024, the company began offering prepaid unlimited data plans marketed under the NOW brand. The company offers international customers services on various gigabyte plans or an unlimited data plan. Customers may either bring their own device or purchase devices from the company with the option to pay upfront or finance the purchase interest-free over 24 months for domestic customers and over 24 to 48 months for international customers.
Video
The company offers video services to residential and business customers primarily through its X1 platform in the United States over the company’s network, and through the company’s Sky Q platform internationally in the United Kingdom and Italy using a combination of satellite transmission and broadband connections. X1 and Sky Q are cloud-based platforms that provide integrated search functionality leveraging set-top boxes and voice-activated remote controls. The integrated features operate across content in customers’ video service packages and content from internet-based streaming services that customers may access in a manner similar to the company’s Xumo Stream Box. The company offers a range of video packages from basic linear service to full linear service, which typically include free-to-air networks and a range of other linear television networks including premium, sports and news networks. The company’s international video packages also include Sky-branded entertainment television networks that offer entertainment, premium movie and free-to-air programming, as well as Sky Sports networks that are part of the company’s Media segment. Customers may also subscribe to digital video recorder (‘DVR’) services or access the company’s video on demand services with programming that is available for no additional cost or to rent or buy digitally. These viewing options are also available through the company’s mobile apps and online portals.
The company also offers DTC streaming services marketed under the NOW brand, with an offering in the United States that launched in 2023. NOW services provide video content over the internet and do not require a set-top box. The company’s international NOW service offerings include packages for monthly access to entertainment, sports and movie programming, as well as daily pass options for sports programming. The company’s domestic NOW TV service is only offered to qualifying residential broadband customers and includes monthly access to a variety of linear television networks; entertainment and movie programming; integrated access to free streaming channels from Xumo Play, NBC and Sky; and access to the ad-supported tier of Peacock.
The company also offers video services in the United Kingdom and Italy over a broadband connection without the need for a satellite dish. These services have an operating system similar to Sky Q and are offered to customers through Sky Stream, which leverages a streaming device and Wi-Fi, or to customers that purchase the company’s Sky Glass smart televisions.
Advertising
As part of the company’s distribution agreements with domestic cable networks, the company generally receives an allocation of scheduled advertising time that the company’s advertising business sells, and the company also sells advertising on its Sky-branded entertainment television networks and on the company’s digital platforms. The company also enters into representation agreements under which the company sells advertising on behalf of third parties both domestically and internationally. Additionally, the company offers technology, tools, data-driven services and marketplace solutions to customers in the media industry to facilitate effective engagement of advertisers with their target audiences.
Other
The company offers residential wireline voice services primarily using interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (‘VoIP’) technology, and the company offers residential security and automation services. The company also licenses its technology platforms to other multichannel video providers and distribute certain of the company’s Sky-branded entertainment television networks to third-party video service providers.
Business Services Connectivity Segment
The company’s Business Services Connectivity segment consists of its domestic service offerings for small businesses, which include broadband, wireline voice and wireless services, as well as the company’s enterprise solutions offerings for medium-sized customers and larger enterprises. Certain business customers subscribe to the company’s video services, and the associated revenue is included in the company’s Residential Connectivity & Platforms segment. The company also has certain business connectivity service offerings in the United Kingdom.
The company’s domestic broadband offerings have a range of service levels, including fiber-based services that deliver symmetrical speeds ranging up to 100 gigabits per second.
The company’s small business broadband, wireline voice and wireless service offerings are similar to those provided to the company’s residential customers and also include cloud-based cybersecurity services, wireless backup connectivity, advanced Wi-Fi solutions, video monitoring services and other cloud-based services.
The company’s enterprise solutions offerings also include ethernet network services, which connect multiple locations and provide higher downstream and upstream speed options, advanced voice services, and a software-defined networking product. Larger enterprises may also receive support services related to Wi-Fi networks, router management, network security, business continuity risks and other services. These services are primarily provided to Fortune 1000 companies and other large enterprises with multiple locations both within and outside of the company’s distribution footprint, where the company provides coverage outside of its service areas through agreements with other companies to use their networks.
Network and Technology
The segments within the company’s Connectivity & Platforms business use its HFC network in the United States, which is sufficiently flexible and scalable to support the company’s future technology requirements and enables the company to continue to grow capacity and capabilities over time. This network provides the two-way transmissions required to provide connectivity services and interactive video and entertainment services through the company’s platforms, and consists primarily of headends, fiber-optic and coaxial cables owned or leased by the company, and equipment such as lasers, routers, switches and content distribution servers. Across nearly the company’s entire domestic footprint, the company leverages DOCSIS 3.1 to offer up to gigabit-plus downstream broadband speeds to residential and business customers. The company also deploys fiber-to-the-premises with symmetrical speed offerings ranging up to 10 gigabits per second to residential customers who request that service, subject to local construction constraints, and up to 100 gigabits per second to business customers. The company offers domestic wireless services using an MVNO agreement that allows the company to offer services using Verizon’s wireless network along with its existing network of Wi-Fi hotspots across the company’s network.
The company continues to evolve and enhance its domestic network capabilities. In connection with a multiyear network transformation plan, in 2022 the company began rolling out downstream speeds of up to 2 gigabits per second to the company’s residential customers, which are now available to approximately 50% of the company’s HFC network footprint. In 2023, the company began deploying in select markets DOCSIS 4.0, which enables the company to deliver multigigabit symmetrical broadband speeds over the company’s existing HFC network. Additionally, as part of the company’s network evolution, the company’s engineering teams have been virtualizing and automating many core network functions using various technologies to expand capacity, increase operating efficiency, and identify and fix network issues proactively before they affect the company’s customers. The company’s investment in virtualizing the network helps maintain network reliability and operational efficiency regardless of whether the company connects a residence using either fiber or its HFC network. The company continues to extend its network’s reach to new homes and businesses within the company’s existing service areas, as well as edging-out to new service areas to expand the number of homes and businesses passed, and a significant portion of new homes and businesses passed are connected with fiber. The company also partners with local, state and federal agencies when possible to provide services to unserved and underserved communities leveraging governmental subsidies where available.
The components of the company’s domestic network require periodic maintenance and replacement and are primarily located on owned and leased properties, and in locations under agreements with local public utilities and municipalities. The company operates national and regional data centers with equipment that is used to provide the company’s services, and the company maintains network operations centers with equipment necessary to monitor and manage the status of the company’s services and network.
The company’s international services are offered leveraging third-party networks, as well as the company’s own core fiber network for broadband and wireline voice services in the United Kingdom. The related operating plant and equipment used to provide the company’s video and connectivity services include leased satellite system signal receiving, encoding and decoding devices, and owned and leased headends and distribution networks, including coaxial, fiber-optic cables and other related equipment. For a majority of international customers, the company’s video platform is delivered via one-way digital satellite transmission that uses satellites leased from third parties for the distribution of television networks, augmented by a set-top box and two-way broadband connectivity. The company offers broadband and wireline voice services in the United Kingdom and Italy using third-party networks. In many cases, the fee for the company to access these networks is on regulated terms. The ranges of service levels and speeds the company offers are dependent upon the capabilities and reach of these third-party networks. The company offers wireless services in the United Kingdom using a combination of a third-party’s network and the company’s own mobile core network.
The company’s Connectivity & Platforms business engineering teams continue to focus on technology initiatives to develop and deploy next-generation media, content delivery, content aggregation and streaming platforms that support X1, Sky Q, NOW, Sky Stream, Sky Glass, Xumo and the company’s cloud DVR technology. These platforms are based on the company’s global technology platform and integrate linear television networks, owned and third-party DTC streaming services and other internet-based apps, and on demand programming into a unified experience with voice-activated remote control search and interactive features. The company also continues to focus on leveraging its own cloud network services to deliver video and advanced search capabilities. The company’s Connectivity & Platforms business also pursues technology initiatives related to broadband and wireless services that leverage the company’s global technology platform. The company provides its customers with in-and-out-of-home Wi-Fi, the ability to manage their Wi-Fi network and connected home with the company’s mobile apps and online portal, advanced security technology, and other features.
Programming
To offer video services, Residential Connectivity & Platforms licenses substantial amounts of linear television programming from third parties and from the company’s Media segment. The fees associated with these distribution agreements are generally based on the number of subscribers receiving the television network programming and a per subscriber fee, although programming expenses for certain television networks are based on a fixed fee. Additionally, certain of the company’s agreements include the rights to offer such programming through multiple delivery platforms, such as through the company’s on demand services, online portal, mobile apps, the Xumo Stream Box, and the company’s NOW and NOW TV streaming services.
The programming on the company’s Sky-branded entertainment television networks includes content licensed from third parties and from the company’s Studios segment, including certain original content. The company’s most significant agreements for the licensing of film and television entertainment content include exclusive rights with Paramount, Warner Bros. and the company’s Studios segment.
Other Sources of Supply and Operations
The company purchases from a limited number of suppliers a significant amount of customer premise equipment, including wireless gateways and set-top boxes, network equipment, and services to provide the company’s broadband and video services to residential and business customers. The company also purchases from a limited number of suppliers a significant number of wireless devices. The company uses a limited number of vendors to provide customer billing for the company’s residential and business customers.
The company’s technical services groups perform various tasks, including installations, plant maintenance and upgrades to the company’s domestic network, and servicing and upgrades of customer premise equipment. The service vehicles used by the company’s technical services groups are primarily owned. The company’s customer service teams provide primarily 24/7 call-answering capability and other services, and also offer the company’s services to residential and business customers.
Competition
Residential Connectivity & Platforms
Wireless
The company competes with national and regional wireless service providers in the United States, including AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon.
Video
The company competes with a number of companies offering video services in the Connectivity & Platforms markets, including:
DTC streaming service providers and aggregators, including subscription-based services, such as Disney+ and Netflix, that offer online services that enable internet streaming and downloading of movies, television shows and other video programming; and virtual multichannel video providers, such as Hulu + Live TV and YouTube TV, that offer streamed linear television networks.
Seasonality
Results in the company’s Residential Connectivity & Platforms segment are impacted by the seasonal nature of residential customers receiving the company’s services, including in college and vacation markets in the United States, and by the timing of the European football seasons in the company’s international markets, which generally result in negative impacts to net customer relationship additions/(losses) in the second quarter of each year (year ended December 2023).
Content & Experiences Business
Media Segment
The company operates its Media segment as a combined television and streaming business, which primarily includes:
NBCUniversal’s national and regional cable networks.
NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks and owned local broadcast television stations.
Peacock DTC streaming service.
International television networks, including Sky Sports networks in the United Kingdom and Italy.
The company distributes a wide variety of programming on its linear television networks and streaming services to appeal to consumers with varying preferences across demographics and geographic areas.
Revenue is primarily generated from the sale of advertising and from the distribution of the company’s television and streaming programming.
The company sells advertising on its linear television networks, Peacock and other digital properties. The company’s advertising sales are affected by the prices the company charges for each advertising unit, which are generally based on the size and demographics of the company’s viewing audiences, audience ratings on its television networks, the number of advertising units the company can place in its programming and on the company’s digital properties, and its ability to sell advertising across the company’s television and streaming business.
The company receives fees from the distribution of its television networks to traditional multichannel video providers, such as the company’s Residential Connectivity & Platforms segment, and virtual multichannel video providers that offer streamed linear television networks. The company’s distribution agreements are generally multiyear, with revenue based on the number of subscribers receiving the programming on the company’s television networks and a per subscriber fee, although revenue for certain of the company’s television networks is based on a fixed fee. These fees include amounts for the company’s owned television networks, including under NBC and Telemundo retransmission consent agreements, as well as associated fees from NBC-affiliated and Telemundo-affiliated local broadcast television stations. The company also receives monthly retail or wholesale subscription fees for Peacock.
The company also generates revenue from the licensing of the company’s owned content and technology and from various digital properties.
Domestic Cable Networks
The company operates a diversified portfolio of cable networks operating predominantly in the United States.
The company’s regional sports networks serve approximately 11 million households across the United States, including in markets, such as Boston, Philadelphia, Sacramento and San Francisco.
Domestic Broadcast Networks
NBC
The NBC network features original entertainment, news and sports programming that reaches viewers in virtually all U.S. television households through more than 200 affiliated stations across the United States, including the company’s 11 owned NBC local broadcast television stations. The NBC owned local broadcast television stations include stations in 8 of the top 10 general markets and collectively reached approximately 35 million U.S. television households as of December 31, 2024, representing approximately 28% of the U.S. television households. In addition to broadcasting the NBC network’s national programming, local broadcast television stations deliver local news, weather, and investigative and consumer reporting.
Telemundo
The Telemundo network, a Spanish-language broadcast network, features original entertainment, news, live specials and sports programming that reaches viewers in over 96% of all U.S. Hispanic television households through 122 affiliated stations, including the company’s 30 owned Telemundo local broadcast television stations, and the company’s national feed. The Telemundo owned local broadcast television stations include stations in all of the top 20 U.S. Hispanic markets and collectively reached approximately 71% of U.S. Hispanic television households as of December 31, 2024. In addition to broadcasting the Telemundo network’s national programming, local broadcast television stations deliver local news, weather, and investigative and consumer reporting. The company also owns an independent Telemundo station serving the Puerto Rico television market.
Peacock
Peacock is the company’s DTC streaming service, featuring NBCUniversal and third-party content. Programming choices include exclusive Peacock originals, current NBC, Bravo and Telemundo shows, news, late-night comedy, live sports and a library of television shows and movies, as well as several live channels. The service is available on internet-connected devices and offered through two subscription-based tiers: an ad-supported tier and a tier featuring the same content ad-free, with certain limited exceptions. The ad-free tier also allows customers to download and watch select programming offline and provides customers with a live stream of their local NBC affiliate stations. The company offers Peacock in the United States directly to customers or through arrangements with third parties and the company’s Residential Connectivity & Platforms segment, which offer Peacock to customers on the company’s behalf.
International Networks
The company operates a diversified portfolio of international television networks, including premium sports networks under the Sky Sports brand in the United Kingdom and Italy, with a majority of networks dedicated to a specific sport, such as European football. The company also operates several NBCUniversal international television networks globally, including CNBC International, Studio Universal, Telemundo International and Universal TV.
Programming
The company’s television networks and Peacock include content licensed from the company’s Studios segment and from third parties, as well as content produced by Media segment businesses, such as live news and sports programming and certain original content, including late-night comedy for NBC and original telenovelas for Telemundo.
The company has various multiyear agreements for the licensing of content, including contracts related to television and/or streaming rights for sporting events. The company generally seeks to include in its sports rights agreements the rights to distribute content on one or more of the company’s television networks and on digital properties, including Peacock.
The company’s most significant sports rights agreements relate to the NBA, NFL, Olympics and English Premier League.
Studios Segment
The company’s Studios segment primarily includes the company’s NBCUniversal and Sky film and television studio production and distribution operations. The company’s studio production facilities primarily include the company’s owned Universal City location in Los Angeles, California and the company’s leased studios in Atlanta, Georgia and in Elstree, United Kingdom. Revenue is generated primarily from the worldwide licensing of the company’s owned film and television content and from the worldwide distribution of the company’s produced and acquired films for exhibition in movie theaters. The company also generates revenue from the sale of physical and digital home entertainment products, as well as the production and licensing of live stage plays and the distribution of content produced by third parties.
Film Studios
The company’s film studios develop, produce, acquire, market and distribute filmed entertainment worldwide. The company’s films are produced primarily under the following names: Universal Pictures, Illumination, DreamWorks Animation, Focus Features, and Working Title.
The company distributes the majority of its films initially for exhibition in movie theaters, while other films are initially distributed through licensing agreements. After their initial release, the company distributes films globally to different customers over multiple licensing windows. The company licenses films, including recent films and selections from the company’s film library, which is consisted of more than 6,500 movies in a variety of genres, to linear television networks and DTC streaming service providers, and to video on demand services provided by multichannel video providers. This includes licenses to the company’s Media and Residential Connectivity & Platforms segments. Certain films are also licensed to the company’s Media segment and made available for viewing on Peacock on the same date as the theatrical release. The company also distribute films globally through the sale of physical and digital home entertainment products. Additionally, the company acquires distribution rights to films produced by third parties, which may be limited to particular geographic regions, specific forms of media or certain periods of time. Theatrical revenue is significantly affected by the timing of each release and the number of films the company distributes, their acceptance by audiences, the number of exhibition screens, ticket prices, the percentage of ticket sales retention by the exhibitors and the popularity of competing films at the time the company’s films are released. The success of a film in movie theaters is generally a significant factor in determining the revenue a film is likely to generate in succeeding licensing windows and through physical and digital home entertainment product sales.
The company develops and produces films both alone and jointly with other studios or production companies. In certain cases, the company has also entered into film co-financing arrangements with third party studios and non-studio entities to jointly finance or distribute certain of the company’s film productions. These arrangements can take various forms, but in most cases involve the grant of an economic interest in a film to an investor. Investors generally assume the full risks and rewards of ownership proportionate to their ownership in the film.
In connection with film studio productions, the company typically owe ‘residuals’ payments to individuals hired under collective bargaining agreements, which are generally calculated based on post-theatrical or content licensing revenue. The company also typically owes ‘participations’ payments to creative talent, to third parties under co-financing agreements and to other parties involved in content production, which are generally based on the financial performance of the content.
Television Studios
The company’s television studios develop, produce and distribute original content, including scripted and unscripted television series. The company also produces television content jointly as co-producers with third-party studios and production companies. The company’s television studios produce content primarily under the following names: Universal Television, Universal Content Productions, Universal Television Alternative Studio, and Universal International Studios.
Sky Studios
The company’s original content is primarily initially licensed to linear television networks and DTC streaming service providers, including those in the company’s Media and Residential Connectivity & Platforms segments. The company also licenses content after its initial airing, license older television content from the company’s television library, and distributes owned and acquired content globally through the sale of physical and digital home entertainment products. The production and distribution costs related to original broadcast television content generally exceed the revenue generated from the initial license, which means that obtaining additional licenses following the initial network license is critical to the content’s financial success. Similar to the company’s film studios, the company typically owes residuals and participations payments in connection with television studio productions.
Theme Parks Segment
The company’s Theme Parks segment primarily includes the operations of the following Universal theme parks:
Universal Orlando Resort: Includes two theme parks, Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure, and the company’s water park, Volcano Bay, all of which are located in Orlando, Florida. Universal Orlando Resort also includes Universal CityWalk Orlando, a dining, retail and entertainment complex, and features on-site themed hotels in which the company own a noncontrolling interest, and will include an additional theme park, Epic Universe, that is expected to open in May 2025.
Universal Studios Hollywood: Includes the Universal Studios Hollywood theme park located in Hollywood, California and Universal CityWalk Hollywood, a dining, retail and entertainment complex.
Universal Studios Japan: Includes the Universal Studios Japan theme park located in Osaka, Japan.
Universal Beijing Resort: Includes the Universal Studios Beijing theme park, as well as Universal CityWalk Beijing, a dining, retail and entertainment complex, and on-site themed hotels, all of which are located in Beijing, China. Universal Beijing Resort is owned by the company and a consortium of Chinese state-owned companies.
The company’s Theme Parks segment properties are primarily owned by the company, although certain properties are leased, including land in Beijing, China and Osaka, Japan. The company has invested and will continue to invest significantly in existing and new theme park attractions, hotels and infrastructure, as well as in new destinations and experiences, such as Epic Universe; Universal Kids Resort, a smaller-scale theme park in Frisco, Texas expected to open in 2026; and Universal Horror Unleashed, a year-round horror entertainment experience in Las Vegas, Nevada expected to open in 2025.
Revenue is generated primarily from guest spending at the company’s theme parks, including ticket sales and in-park spending on food, beverages and merchandise, and from the company’s consumer products business. Revenue for the company’s theme parks generally depends on the overall environment for travel and tourism, including consumer spending on leisure and other recreational activities.
The company also licenses the right to use the Universal Studios brand name and other intellectual property and provides other services to third parties, including the party that owns and operates the Universal Studios Singapore theme park on Sentosa Island, Singapore. The themed elements in the company’s rides, attractions, and merchandising are based on intellectual property in the company’s Studios and Media segments and intellectual property licensed from third parties under long-term agreements.
Seasonality
Revenue fluctuates depending on the timing of when the company’s programming is aired, which typically results in additional advertising revenue in the second and fourth quarters of each year.
Revenue in Studios fluctuates due to the timing, nature and number of films released in movie theaters, through DTC streaming services and viewing on demand, and on physical and digital home entertainment products. Release dates are determined by several factors, including competition and the timing of vacation and holiday periods. As a result, revenue tends to be seasonal, with increases experienced each year during the summer months and around the winter holiday season. The company incurs significant marketing expenses before and throughout the release of a film in movie theaters and as a result, the company typically incurs losses on a film prior to and during the film’s exhibition in movie theaters. Content licensing revenue also fluctuates due to the timing of when the company’s film and television content is made available to licensees. Revenue from the company’s television studios fluctuates in part due to a correlation with the broadcast network season beginning annually in September.
Revenue in Theme Parks fluctuates with changes in theme park attendance that typically result from the seasonal nature of vacation travel and weather variations, local entertainment offerings and the opening of new attractions, as well as with changes in currency exchange rates. The company’s theme parks generally experience peak attendance during the spring holiday period, the summer months when schools are closed and the winter holiday season.
Corporate and Other
The company’s other business interests reported in Corporate and Other consist primarily of the company’s Sky-branded video services and television networks in Germany, Comcast Spectacor, which owns the Philadelphia Flyers and the Wells Fargo Center arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Xumo, the company’s consolidated streaming platform joint venture with Charter Communications formed in June 2022. Xumo is focused on developing and offering a streaming platform on a variety of devices, including Xumo TV smart televisions, which have an operating system that leverages the company’s global technology platform, and also operates the Xumo Play streaming service.
Legislation and Regulation
The company’s businesses are subject to various federal, state, local, and international laws and regulations. In the United States in particular, the Communications Act of 1934, as amended (the ‘Communications Act’), and Federal Communications Commission (‘FCC’) rules and regulations affect significant aspects of the company’s communications businesses.
Voice
The company provides voice services using VoIP technology. The FCC has adopted a number of regulations for providers of nontraditional voice services such as the company, including regulations relating to privacy of customer proprietary network information, local number portability duties and benefits, disability access, E911, law enforcement assistance, outage reporting, Universal Service Fund contribution obligations, rural call completion, customer equipment back-up power, robocall mitigation, service discontinuance and certain regulatory filing requirements.
The company’s businesses are subject to laws and regulations that impose various restrictions and obligations related to privacy and the processing of individuals’ personal information. In the United States, federal privacy laws and regulations, such as those found within the Communications Act or the Video Privacy Protection Act, restrict companies’ collection, use, disclosure and retention of personal information.
Internationally, many of the laws that apply to the company’s businesses are similar to the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation and the United Kingdom’s Data Protection Act of 2018, which broadly regulate the processing of personal data collected from individuals in the European Union and United Kingdom, respectively.
Some of the company’s businesses are also subject to the FTC’s general oversight of consumer privacy protections through its enforcement authority over unfair and deceptive acts or practices, as well as through its enforcement authority over the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act. The FTC has sought to expand its authority in this area through various rulemakings related to general privacy, targeted advertising and children’s privacy.
The company is occasionally subject to enforcement actions and investigations at the FCC and other federal, state, and local agencies, as well as foreign governments and regulatory authorities.
History
Comcast Corporation was founded in 1963. The company was incorporated under the laws of Pennsylvania in 2001.
