Comcast

Comcast Corporation is a big American company that works with many kinds of media, telecommunications, and entertainment. Its main office is in the Comcast Center in Philadelphia, but it also has big offices in New York City at 30 Rockefeller Plaza. In 2023, it was ranked 51st in the Forbes Global 2000 list.

Comcast is the fourth-largest telecommunications company in the world. It provides services like cable TV, home internet, and telephone services to millions of people in the United States. It also owns Xfinity, which offers internet and TV services, and Comcast Business, which serves companies.

Since 2013, Comcast has owned NBCUniversal, a major media company. Through NBCUniversal, Comcast makes movies and TV shows, runs networks like NBC and Telemundo, and operates theme parks under Universal Destinations & Experiences. It also owns the streaming service Peacock and several other media brands.

History

Comcast started in 1963 when three men bought a small cable company in Tupelo, Mississippi. They named it Comcast Corporation in 1969. Over the years, Comcast grew by buying many other companies, becoming one of the biggest cable and internet providers in the United States.

In the 1990s and 2000s, Comcast kept growing. It bought large cable companies, started its own internet service, and even tried to buy Disney once, though that didn’t work out. In 2011, Comcast bought NBCUniversal, which includes many popular TV channels and movie studios.

Today, Comcast is a huge company with many different parts, including cable and internet services, TV networks, and movie studios. It keeps changing and growing to stay important in entertainment and technology.

Divisions and subsidiaries

For a more comprehensive list, see list of assets owned by Comcast and list of libraries owned by Comcast.

Comcast Cable (Xfinity)

Main article: Xfinity

Comcast Cable, known as Xfinity, offers cable television, internet, and phone services. It also provides similar services to small and medium businesses through its Comcast Business brand, and to large companies through Comcast Enterprise.

NBCUniversal

Main article: NBCUniversal

Comcast provides television programming to its customers and creates its own shows for its subscribers and others. It owns several channels like Comcast SportsNet and SportsNet New York. In 2009, Comcast agreed to carry ESPNU and ESPN3 channels.

Comcast owns many networks such as Bravo and NBCSN, along with regional sports networks. After buying most of NBCUniversal, Comcast added many more channels. It also runs local channels in some areas, showing local news and sports.

DreamWorks Animation

Main article: DreamWorks Animation

In 2016, NBCUniversal bought DreamWorks Animation, getting popular characters like Shrek, How to Train Your Dragon, and Kung Fu Panda. The purchase also included many other beloved characters and stories.

Sky Group

Main article: Sky Group

Comcast offers television programming through Sky in several European countries, including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Italy. Sky is a big media company with millions of viewers.

Xumo

Main article: Xumo

Xumo is a free streaming service that Comcast bought in 2020. It plans to work with its other services and smart TV makers to bring more content to viewers.

Professional sports

In 1996, Comcast bought a big part of Spectacor. Today, Comcast Spectacor includes the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team and their arena. It also has parts of an esports group with a company in South Korea. Over time, Comcast has owned many sports channels and sponsored racing events.

Corporate affairs

Leadership

Comcast is described as a family business. Brian L. Roberts, its chairman and CEO, is the son of founder Ralph J. Roberts. Roberts owns about 1% of all Comcast shares but controls all of the Class B supervoting shares, giving him significant control over the company. In 2010, he was among the highest-paid executives in the United States, with total compensation of about $31 million.

Board of directors

As of January 4, 2026:^[update]

• Kenneth J. Bacon
• Thomas J. Baltimore Jr.
• Madeline S. Bell
• Louise F. Brady
• Edward D. Breen, Lead Independent Director
• Michael J. Cavanagh, Co-CEO
• Jeffrey A. Honickman
• Wonya Y. Lucas
• Asuka Nakahara
• Brian L. Roberts, Chairman & Co-CEO
• Gordon Smith

Executives

• Brian L. Roberts, Chairman & Co-CEO
• Michael J. Cavanagh, Co-CEO
  • Jason S. Armstrong, Chief Financial Officer
    • Lisa Bonnell, Executive Vice President, Comcast Global Audit & General Auditor
    • Kristine Dankenbrink, Executive Vice President, Tax
    • Greg Horn, Executive Vice President, Corporate Financial Planning and Analysis
    • Daniel C. Murdock, Executive Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer & Controller
    • Marci Ryvicker, Executive Vice President, Investor Relations
  • Karen Dougherty Buchholz, Executive Vice President, Administration
    • Kimberley D. Harris, Executive Vice President, Comcast Corporation and General Counsel of NBCUniversal
  • Bob Eatroff, Executive Vice President, Global Corporate Development & Strategy
  • Daniel J. Hilferty, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Comcast Spectacor
  • Jennifer Khoury, Chief Communications Officer
  • Thomas J. Reid, Chief Legal Officer & Secretary
    • Francis M. Buono, Executive Vice President, Legal Regulatory Affairs & Senior Deputy General Counsel
    • Lynn R. Charytan, Executive Vice President & Senior Deputy General Counsel, Comcast Corporation and Executive Vice President & General Counsel, Comcast Cable
    • Broderick D. Johnson, Executive Vice President, Public Policy & Executive Vice President, Digital Equity
    • Lance West, Executive Vice President, Federal Government Affairs & Head of the Washington, D.C. Office
  • Dana Strong, Group Chief Executive Officer, Sky
  • David N. Watson, President & Chief Executive Officer, Comcast Cable
  • Dalila Wilson-Scott, Executive Vice President and Chief Diversity Officer, Comcast Corporation & President, Comcast NBCUniversal Foundation

Corporate offices

Comcast is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and has offices in Atlanta, Detroit, Denver, Manchester, New Hampshire and New York City. In 2005, it announced it would become the anchor tenant in the new Comcast Center in downtown Philadelphia. In 2018, it finished construction of the Comcast Technology Center, Pennsylvania's tallest skyscraper, next to its original headquarters. As of 2019, the company had 184,000 employees.

Employee relations

Comcast has faced criticism for its employee policies. Reports have said that customer service focuses too much on sales, technicians are not enough, and tech support is not well trained.

Despite these criticisms, Comcast has been recognized as a good place to work. It has appeared on lists of top places to work for its scale, vision, and diversity.

Financial performance

Comcast reported a net profit each year from 2006 to 2022.

As of 2020, the company was ranked 28th on the Fortune 500 list of the largest U.S. corporations by total revenue.

For the fiscal year 2022, Comcast reported earnings of US$15.4 billion, a decrease of 6.2% compared to the prior year. Annual revenue increased by 4.3% over the same period. Their net debt was $91.2 billion, exceeding total shareholders' equity of $80.9 billion as of December 31, 2022.

Lobbying and electoral fundraising

Comcast spends a lot on lobbying and supporting political campaigns. In 2013, it had the seventh largest lobbying budget in the United States. Comcast has supported many political candidates and causes, including efforts to change laws about internet services.

Philanthropy

Comcast offers low-cost internet and cable service to schools, supported by government programs. The company also supports various community efforts through its foundation.

Cybersecurity incidents

In May 2008, a group of hackers took control of Comcast’s website for about five hours by changing important settings. No one was hurt, but Comcast lost money because people could not use their email or phone services.

In July 2015, experts found a problem in software that Comcast used. This problem could let someone show fake login pages to trick people into sharing their passwords.

In November 2015, about 200,000 Comcast customers had to change their passwords after login details were found online. Comcast said this was not because of a problem in their own systems.

In January 2016, experts found issues with Comcast’s home security system. These problems could stop the system from working properly and alert people to problems in their homes.

In December 2023, Comcast told customers that information from about 35.9 million accounts was affected by a problem with their software. This included usernames and encrypted passwords. Comcast asked customers to change their passwords and use extra security steps.

In February 2024, a company that used to collect debts for Comcast had a problem that let some customer information be seen online. This included names, addresses, and account numbers.

In June 2025, reports said that Comcast may have been targeted by a group linked to a foreign government, but details about what happened were not clear.

Criticism and controversies

Main article: Criticism of Comcast

Some people have not been happy with Comcast over the years. In surveys from 2004 and 2007, many customers said they were not satisfied with the company's service. In 2014 and again in 2010, a contest called "Worst Company in America" chose Comcast as the least popular company in the United States.

Comcast has also faced legal issues. In 2016, a lawsuit claimed the company charged customers for services they did not ask for. The company agreed to improve its customer service and refund some money to affected customers. In 2018, another lawsuit said Comcast added extra charges to bills without permission. The company settled this case by refunding money and promising to be clearer about prices in the future.

Carbon footprint

Comcast shared information about the amount of a type of gas called CO2e that they released into the air. This was measured for the whole year ending on December 31, 2020. The amount was 2,291 Kt, which was a little less than the year before.