Home Rentals - Why Comcast Will Never Be Great Again - Dailyfinance

I've lived through the familiar horror stories of tardy repair appointments, ineffective customer service, and outage credits that never arrive. I would bolt, but folks on rival services also do a fair share of bellyaching.

The entire premium television industry isn't in a funk. For every Comcast and Dish Network (DISH ) that lost subscribers during July, August, and September, there's a DirecTV ( ) or AT&T U-verse that gained new homes.

The Peacock's Feathers

Comcast's decision to buy NBCUniversal seems to be an admission that content and not simply being a gateway to content is king. Unfortunately for Comcast, the NBCUniversal deal is also a conflict of interest.

Having interests in movie studios, television shows, and actual channels makes other networks rightfully weary of the deals they sign with Comcast. We also already know that Comcast can be an easy target.

Comcast's studio put out Tower Heist last week. The cable provider was hoping to use the movie to test out the concept of $60 home rentals of movies while they are still playing at the corner multiplex. Yes, 60 bucks! Exhibitors obviously didn't like the move, threatening to boycott the movie in their theaters if Comcast went through with its stunt. Comcast blinked.