Comcast Corporation, often just called Comcast, is a huge international company based in Philadelphia, USA. It's a leader in telecommunications and digital media. Think of it as one of the biggest companies that brings you entertainment and ways to connect.

Comcast is known for providing cable television, broadband internet, and telephone service to homes and businesses across 40 U.S. states and Washington, D.C.. It's the largest home internet provider in the United States.

Beyond just connecting people, Comcast also owns NBCUniversal. This means they create lots of movies and TV shows. They also own theme parks! Since 2018, Comcast has also owned Sky Group, a major media company in Europe.

Like any big company, Comcast has faced some challenges. For example, they have worked to improve how they serve their customers.

Evolution of Comcast NBCUniversal

1912	Universal Pictures is founded
1926	NBC is founded
1928	Walter Lantz Productions is established
1943	MCA Inc. establishes Revue Studios (later Universal Television)
1953	NBC begins first compatible color broadcasts, preceding other networks by nine years
1956	NBC's first peacock logo debuts
1963	American Cable Systems is founded
1964	Universal Studios Hollywood opens
1967	NBC broadcasts the first Super Bowl
1968	American Cable Systems rebrands to Comcast
1972	Comcast began trading on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)
1975	Universal releases Jaws
1980	PolyGram renames Casablanca Record & Filmworks to PolyGram Pictures MCA Videocassette‚ Inc. (Later Universal Pictures Home Entertainment is established
1982	Universal releases E.T. The Extra Terrestrial
1984	Walter Lantz Productions' assets are sold to Universal Telemundo is founded
1985	Universal releases Back to the Future
1986	General Electric buys RCA for $6.4 billion, including NBC and a stake in A&E
1989	NBC relaunches Tempo Television as CNBC
1990	Universal Studios Florida opens Law & Order premieres on NBC Sky Television and British Satellite Broadcasting merge to form British Sky Broadcasting Universal Cartoon Studios (later Universal Animation Studios) is established
1993	Universal releases Jurassic Park
1994	DreamWorks Animation is founded
1996	NBC and Microsoft replace America's Talking with MSNBC
1997	Barry Diller purchases Universal's domestic television assets
1998	Seagram acquires PolyGram Filmed Entertainment Universal Television is renamed Studios USA Television
1999	PolyGram Filmed Entertainment is folded into Universal Pictures Universal Studios Florida expands to become Universal Orlando Resort Law & Order: Special Victims Unit premieres on NBC
2001	Grand opening of Universal Studios Japan Universal releases The Fast and the Furious Vivendi purchases Studios USA
2002	NBC acquires Telemundo and Bravo Studios USA assets are folded into Universal Focus Features is formed Comcast acquires AT&T Broadband for $44.5 billion
2003	Universal becomes the first studio with five summer releases breaking the $100 million mark
2004	GE and Vivendi merge NBC and Universal into NBCUniversal
2005	The Office premieres on NBC Comcast sets up a joint-venture with PBS, Sesame Workshop & HIT Entertainment to form PBS Kids Sprout Comcast & Time Warner Cable jointly acquire Adelphia Cable assets for $17.6 billion
2006	USA Network begins 13-year streak as #1 cable network in total viewers
2007	Illumination is founded
2010	Universal releases Illumination's first film Despicable Me
2011	Vivendi divested in NBCU; Comcast buys 51% of NBCU from GE, turning it into a limited liability company NBCUniversal Archives is founded
2012	Universal celebrates its 100th anniversary NBCUniversal divests its A&E Networks minority stake
2013	Comcast buys GE's remaining 49% of NBCU Comcast/NBCU assumes full ownership of Sprout
2014	Comcast attempts to acquire Time Warner Cable for $45.2 billion NBCUniversal reaches a new long-term deal with WWE
2016	NBCU acquires DreamWorks Animation
2017	Sprout relaunches as Universal Kids
2018	Comcast acquires Sky after a heated bidding war with 21st Century Fox
2019	NBCU acquires Cineo Lighting
2020	NBCU launches Peacock
2021	Grand opening of Universal Beijing Resort
2023	The Super Mario Bros. Movie becomes Illumination's highest-grossing film
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About Comcast

Who Leads Comcast?

Brian L. Roberts

Comcast is often seen as a family business. The current chairman and CEO, Brian L. Roberts, is the son of the company's founder, Ralph J. Roberts. Brian Roberts has a lot of say in how the company is run.

Comcast Offices Around the World

Comcast's main office is in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They also have offices in other big cities like Atlanta, Detroit, Denver, and New York City. In Philadelphia, they have two very tall buildings, the Comcast Center and the Comcast Technology Center. These are some of the tallest skyscrapers in Pennsylvania! As of 2019, Comcast had about 184,000 employees working for them.

Working at Comcast

Comcast has sometimes faced criticism about how it treats its employees. However, it has also been recognized as a great place to work by several magazines and journals. For example, CableFAX magazine and The Boston Globe have listed Comcast among the top places to work. The company is also known for its diverse workforce.

Comcast's Money Matters

Comcast is a very successful company. It has made a profit every year from 2006 to 2022. In 2020, it was ranked 28th among the largest U.S. companies by total money earned. In 2022, Comcast reported earning about $15.4 billion.

Helping Communities

Comcast helps schools by offering low-cost internet and cable services. They also have a foundation, the Comcast Foundation, that supports many good causes.

Comcast's Journey Through Time

Ralph J. Roberts, founder of Comcast, with his son Brian L. Roberts, at their Philadelphia headquarters in 1999

Starting Small: American Cable Systems

In 1963, a man named Ralph J. Roberts and his two partners bought a small cable company called American Cable Systems. It was in Tupelo, Mississippi, had only five channels, and served 12,000 customers. In 1965, they bought a company that specialized in placing products in supermarkets. Later, in 1968, they even bought a franchise of Muzak, which plays background music in stores.

Becoming Comcast

Comcast logo from 1969 to 2000

The company officially became Comcast Corporation in 1969. In 1972, Comcast became a public company, meaning people could buy shares in it. In 1977, they started offering HBO to their customers.

In the 1980s, Comcast grew a lot. They bought a big part of Group W Cable, which doubled their number of customers to 1 million. They also invested in QVC, a shopping channel, and bought a mobile phone company, becoming a mobile phone operator for the first time.

Growing Bigger (1990–2001)

In 1990, Ralph Roberts' son, Brian L. Roberts, became the president of Comcast. The company continued to grow by buying other cable and cellular phone companies. By 1994, Comcast was the third-largest cable company in the U.S., with about 3.5 million customers.

In 1996, Comcast started offering internet service. They also formed Comcast Spectacor, which owns the Philadelphia Flyers hockey team. In 1997, Microsoft invested $1 billion in Comcast, and the company launched its digital TV service. They also gained control of E! Entertainment. By the end of 1997, Comcast had grown to serve many major cities.

In 1999, Comcast bought Lenfest Communications, which was a large cable operator in the Philadelphia area. This made Comcast the main cable provider in that region.

The Largest U.S. Cable Provider (2001–Present)

Proposed merger name logo, 2001

Comcast logo introduced on December 12, 1999; used from 2000 until January 27, 2013. It was used in this form from 2007 until 2013.

In 2001, Comcast announced plans to buy AT&T Broadband, which was the biggest cable TV company at the time. This huge deal was completed in 2002, making Comcast the largest cable TV company in the United States with over 22 million customers! This also led to the creation of Comcast Advertising Sales.

In 2004, Comcast tried to buy The Walt Disney Company, but the deal didn't happen. In 2005, Comcast and Sony Pictures Entertainment teamed up to buy MGM and United Artists, famous movie studios.

In 2005, Comcast also bought Susquehanna Communications, another cable and internet provider. In 2006, they bought thePlatform, a software company that helps manage online media.

In 2008, Comcast bought Plaxo, a company that helps people manage their contacts online.

Buying Adelphia

In 2005, Comcast and Time Warner Cable agreed to buy the assets of Adelphia Cable, which was going through a difficult time. This deal was completed in 2006, and it helped Comcast become even bigger.

Bringing in NBCUniversal

NBCUniversal logo from 2011 to present

In 2009, news spread that Comcast was interested in buying NBCUniversal. This company owns the NBC television network, cable channels like USA Network and Syfy, and Universal Pictures (the movie studio). After some talks, Comcast agreed to buy a controlling share (51%) of NBCUniversal in 2010. The deal was approved in 2011. In 2013, Comcast bought the rest of NBCUniversal, making it a fully owned part of Comcast.

Logo used from January 28, 2013 to January 10, 2024

During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Comcast's profits went down, partly because their theme parks like Universal Studios had to limit visitors or close.

Attempt to Buy Time Warner Cable

In 2014, Comcast tried to buy Time Warner Cable for a lot of money. This would have added many more cities to Comcast's service areas. However, the deal faced concerns from regulators and was eventually called off in 2015.

Adding DreamWorks Animation

In 2016, Comcast's NBCUniversal division bought DreamWorks Animation for $3.8 billion. This brought popular movie franchises like Shrek, How to Train Your Dragon, and Kung Fu Panda under the Comcast umbrella.

Getting into Cellular Service

In 2016, Comcast partnered with Verizon Wireless to launch its own cellular network service. This new service, called Xfinity Mobile, was launched in 2017. It allows Comcast to offer a "quadruple play" of services: TV, internet, home phone, and mobile phone.

Acquiring Sky Group

Comcast also tried to buy parts of 21st Century Fox in 2017, but that deal didn't happen. Instead, in 2018, Comcast focused on buying Sky Group, a major media company in Europe. After a bidding war, Comcast successfully bought all of Sky for about $40 billion. This made Sky a fully owned part of Comcast in November 2018.

In 2023, Comcast and Disney agreed that Comcast would sell its share in Hulu, a popular streaming service.

Comcast's Businesses

Comcast Cable (Xfinity)

Xfinity is the brand name for Comcast's main services. This includes cable television, broadband internet, and home telephone service. Comcast also provides similar services to businesses through its Comcast Business brand.

NBCUniversal

NBCUniversal is a huge part of Comcast. It creates and distributes a lot of TV shows and movies. This includes:

TV Networks: Channels like NBC, Telemundo, MSNBC, CNBC, USA Network, Syfy, Oxygen, Bravo, and E!.
Film Studio: Universal Pictures, which makes many popular movies.
Animation Studios: DreamWorks Animation, Illumination, and Universal Animation Studios, known for animated films like Shrek and Minions.
Streaming Service: Peacock, where you can watch many shows and movies online.
Theme Parks: Universal Destinations & Experiences, which operates theme parks like Universal Studios Hollywood and Universal Studios Florida.

DreamWorks Animation

As mentioned, NBCUniversal bought DreamWorks Animation in 2016. This means Comcast now owns the rights to popular characters and stories from movies like Shrek, How to Train Your Dragon, and Kung Fu Panda.

Sky Group

Sky Group is a large media company in Europe that Comcast now owns. Sky provides TV channels and services to customers in countries like the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, and Italy. It's Europe's biggest pay-TV company.

Xumo

Xumo is a free streaming service that Comcast bought in 2020. It offers many TV channels and movies for free, supported by ads. Comcast is also using Xumo to power its own smart TVs, called "XClass TV," and a new streaming platform in partnership with Charter Communications.

Sports Teams and Venues

Comcast also has a big presence in professional sports through Comcast Spectacor. They own the Philadelphia Flyers NHL hockey team and their home arena in Philadelphia. Comcast also sponsors the NASCAR Xfinity Series, a major racing series.

Images for kids

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