Comcast broadband losses mount as cable business faces reported layoffs

Comcast’s domestic residential broadband business shed 144,000 customers in Q3 2026, the company reported. Variety separately reported plans for widespread layoffs within its cable operations, with the number of affected positions still unclear.

Quarterly revenue dropped to US$29.3 billion from US$31.2 billion, a decline of 6.1%. Comcast attributed the reported decrease to the Versant separation and the sale of Sky’s German operations. Revenue on a pro forma basis was up 0.5%, while net income increased 3.5% to US$3.45 billion.

The subscriber decline came as fiber and wireless competitors offered lower-priced connections. Comcast recorded net additions of 368,000 domestic wireless lines, taking that business to 10.6 million lines by the quarter’s close.

According to Variety, the expected layoffs concern Comcast Cable rather than NBCUniversal divisions. Comcast CFO Jason Armstrong said the company was broadening its deployment of customer-service AI to make interactions simpler and improve customers’ experience. He said AI had reduced service contact rates by roughly 20%.

Comcast has also announced plans to separate its media and entertainment operations from its connectivity businesses. NBCUniversal and Sky are to form one independent company listed publicly through a tax-free spin-off for Comcast shareholders, with completion targeted around mid-2027. Afterward, Comcast plans to concentrate on broadband, wireless, business services and cable TV.