Comcast to Air FIFA World Cup in Select Vernaculars - Analyst Blog

Comcast Corp. CMCSA has ensured that it does not miss out on the FIFA World Cup 2014 fever. Customers of this leading cable Multiple System Operator MSO will now be able to enjoy the much-awaited soccer tournament in select languages of their own choice via Comcast's Xfinity TV microsites and Xfinity TV Go app.

All the 64 matches will now be made available in Spanish via Comcast's On Demand innovation – Instant On Demand. The games will also be streamed live in languages like English and Portuguese while select matches will be available in Korean. The Xfinity Latino Entertainment Channel, which is the only Spanish channel available in the industry, will contain direct links to World Cup matches and will also feature special programs related to the tournament.

We believe Comcast's addition of such innovative customer-oriented features to cash upon the World Cup frenzy will not only enhance the company's existing subscriber base but will also help reduce churn rate.

In the same vein, last month, Comcast's rival and the second largest satellite TV operator in the U.S. – DISH Network Corp. DISH revealed its plans to pep up the FIFA World Cup experience for its customers.

As of Mar 31, 2014, Comcast had 21.068 million (up 6% year over year) High-Speed Internet customers; 10.865 million (up 6.4%) Voice customers; and 22.601 million (down 1%) Video customers. The company added a net of 383,000 High-Speed Internet customers compared with 433,000 in the year-ago quarter. Likewise, Comcast added 142,000 Voice customers as against 211,000 in the prior-year quarter.

Comcast currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). The company's Cable business continues to perform well. The NBC Universal segment is also witnessing improvement. Moreover, the extension of Olympics telecast rights through 2032 coupled with the launch of innovative services has resulted in video subscriber additions, after a long gap of 26 quarters. In addition, the company is planning to acquire rival Time Warner Cable Inc. TWC, which should strengthen its foothold in the U.S. pay-TV market.

A better-ranked stock worth considering in this sector is Shaw Communications, Inc. SJR with a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).