The news: NBCUniversal parent company Comcast reported strong Q2 results on Thursday, fueled by the FIFA World Cup and continued growth at Peacock.
By the numbers:
- Total media revenues: $5.7 billion, +25.3% YoY; +15.6% YoY excluding FIFA World Cup
- US advertising revenues: $2.2 billion, +55% YoY
- Peacock EBITDA: $189 million, increasing $290 million YoY and marking Peacock’s first profitable quarter
- Peacock paid subscribers: +2 million net additions, now up to 48 million
- Domestic video revenues: $6.1 billion, -7.8% YoY
- Domestic video customers: 10.67 million, down from 11.77 million a year earlier
- Programming expenses: -7.5%, attributed to a shrinking video customer base
Behind the numbers: Comcast’s quarter reflects two defining media trends: Tentpole live events remain powerful revenue drivers, while streaming increasingly carries growth as linear TV declines.
- Comcast’s revenue growth would have been far lower without the World Cup. This follows a similar trend the company saw in Q1, when massive growth was heavily driven by the Super Bowl and Olympics.
- The vast majority of Peacock subscribers are ad-supported viewers, making it a strong advertising channel and important tool for Comcast to bring marquee events to a growing, lucrative digital sports audience. Peacock’s first profitable quarter signals that its combination of live sports, subscriber growth, and ad-supported reach is beginning to pay off.
- Declines in Comcast’s domestic video revenues and customers—largely tied to its traditional pay-TV and Xfinity cable offerings—alongside Peacock’s growth underscore the continued shift from linear television to streaming.