The 17 largest cable companies and telcos in the U.S. added more than 700,000 net high-speed Internet subscribers in 3Q 2014. Accounting for about 94 percent of the market, broadband subscribers numbers for the largest cable companies and telcos in the U.S. totaled 86.6 million as of end-3Q – over 51.2 million for cable companies and nearly 35.4 million for telcos, according to new market research from Leichtman Research Group (LRG).
Adding a net 315,000 subscribers during the quarter, U.S. broadband market leader Comcast ended 3Q with 21.59 million high-speed Internet subscribers. The U.S. second-largest cable based broadband service provider, and prospective Comcast merger partner Time Warner Cable added a net 108,000 subscribers, ending 3Q with a total 12.07 million, according to LRG.
Among telcos, AT&T added a net 38,000 net high-speed Internet subscribers in 3Q, ending the quarter with 16.49 million subscribers. Verizon added 69,000 net subscribers for an end-of-quarter total of 9.15 million.
Broadband Subscriber Growth Accelerates
“Despite there being 86.6 million broadband subscribers in the US via major cable and telco providers, the industry has added subscribers at a faster pace over the past year than it did over the prior year,” LRG president and principal analyst Bruce Leichtman highlighted. “Over the past year, cable companies accounted for 86% of the 2.9 million net broadband adds.”
Other highlights of the LRG research include:
- Overall, broadband additions in 3Q 2014 amounted to 135% of those in 3Q 2013;
- The top cable companies accounted for 83% of the net broadband additions for the quarter versus the top telephone companies;
- The top cable companies added about 580,000 subscribers, representing 133% of the net additions for the top cable companies in 3Q 2013;
- The top telephone companies added about 120,000 broadband subscribers in 3Q 2014 — compared to a gain of about 80,000 in 3Q 2013;
- Over the past year, there were about 2,930,000 net broadband adds — compared to about 2,540,000 over the prior year, and 2,925,000 two years ago.
