Providing market intelligence for more than 35 years

In The News

The Triple-Play Bundle Is Dead, But This Surprisingly Popular Bundle Just Might Stop Cable Companies' Bleeding

Market research outfit Parks Associates offers up a glimpse of the bundle's penetration: As of the end of the first quarter of this year, 19% of U.S. broadband subscribers also enjoy wireless/mobile service offered by the same provider.

It's not a lot, admittedly. But put it in perspective. Charter's Spectrum only began offering mobile phone service in mid-2018. It now serves nearly 2.7 million mobile customers. Comcast's Xfinity Mobile platform only launched in mid-2017, and it's already signed up 3.1 million wireless subscribers. The portion of domestic broadband customers who have bundled their high-speed internet service with a mobile plan has grown from only around 11% in early 2019, according to Parks Associates' data, to the aforementioned current figure of 19%.

Parks Associates indicates the average cost of a broadband/mobile combo is $128 per month. With stand-alone broadband service costing an average of $64 per month, the other $64 of the combo's total cost is on par with a typical wireless service plan's monthly cost. Although the mobile service arena is highly competitive, at least we know that all the major names in the mobile telecom business are profitable. Given how the cable television industry has been on the defensive for years, conversely, it's not always clear if there's still any real profit to be gleaned by being in the business.

From the article, "The Triple-Play Bundle Is Dead, But This Surprisingly Popular Bundle Just Might Stop Cable Companies' Bleeding" by James Brumley. 

Previously In The News

Sales Of Emergency Devices For Elderly Grow, But 'Can't Get Up' Too Much

Marketers do see an uptick. Parks Associates estimates that over 10% of the 65+ population will own a PERS system by 2021, and that figure will jump to 15% for seniors 75 and over. By that year, more...

Smart Home Devices Working Together Tops Brand Loyalty

This matters, since about a third (32%) of U.S. broadband households already own at least one connected device and a whopping 50% of households intend to purchase one in the next year, according to th...

Esports Niche Getting Bigger; 62% Play At Least An Hour Per Week

"Esports is currently a niche market, but it has the ability to engage often hard-to-reach demographics," says Hunter Sappington, a Parks research analyst, in comments accompanying the latest report....

Best Buy Acquires Senior-Focused Device Maker for $800 Million

Companies such as Google, Microsoft Corp. and Samsung Electronics Co. are also competing for the market, fueled by compelling demographics. By 2020 about 45 million Americans will be caring for 117 mi...