Despite the rise of virtual MVPDs that can deliver services nationwide by going over-the-top, Comcast still believes that the most prudent business path is to grow its video sub base in-footprint.
“We just fundamentally believe, for now, that our in-market footprint strategy is where we add the most value to consumers,” Brian Roberts, Comcast’s chairman and CEO, said Wednesday on the company’s Q2 earnings call, echoing sentiments he shared in May at the INTX show in Boston.
Related: Comcast Extends Roberts’ Employment Pact One Year
“OTT economics are unproven to us,” he added. “It’s not clear that that’s the right strategy for us.”
Comcast, however, is expanding the reach of its X1 platform outside its own footprint ostensibly through syndication/licensing agreements with MSOs such as Cox Communications and Shaw Communications, which plans to start rolling out X1-based set-tops later this year. Cox has already rolled out its new Contour-branded flavor of X1 across its footprint.
