Europe Nervous About Comcast's Bad Rep As Sky Deal Looms Europeans are nervous about Comcast's terrible reputation here in the States as the company ponders a major European expansion. Comcast last week unveiled a surprise proposal to buy European pay TV giant Sky Broadcasting in a massive $31 billion proposal. Sky's satellite television service boasts more than 22 million customers in Britain, Ireland, Germany, Austria and Italy. With broadband growth slowing and TV subscribers in decline, Comcast and other broadband and cable giants are increasingly making major media buys in a quest to retain their relevance.

But news reports from overseas ( like this one in the Guardian ) make it clear that Europeans are wary about Comcast's long-standing reputation for anti-competitive behavior and shoddy customer service. Comcast has of course been promising to improve its customer service for the better part of the last decade. But despite some modest improvements, Comcast remains among the lowest-ranked companies for customer service and satisfaction among any companies, in any industry in America. Given the United States is home to some of the worst airline, banking, insurance companies anywhere, that remains an impressive feat. But Europeans aren't exactly keep on bringing that level of "customer commitment" overseas, and the company may face regulatory headwinds in sealing the deal. "Comcast has been found by US antitrust enforcers to have the opportunity and incentive to harm consumers and competition by favouring its own content, raising prices for rivals and potentially interfering with broadband transmission,” said Gene Kimmelman, long-standing US consumer advocate. “Based on our experience in the US, it is likely that UK competition officials would have significant concerns about whether Comcast may harm competition and drive up consumer prices through an acquisition of all or the majority of Sky assets," he added. Rupert Murdoch’s £11.7bn bid to buy the 61% of Sky he doesn't already own has similarly raised hackles among regulators nervous about the negative impact of rampant media consolidation on the quality of discourse and overall competition. Rupert Murdoch’s £11.7bn bid to buy the 61% of Sky he doesn't already own has similarly raised hackles among regulators nervous about the negative impact of rampant media consolidation on the quality of discourse and overall competition.







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Most recommended from 19 comments



camper

just visiting this planet

Premium Member

join:2010-03-21

Bethel, CT 12 recommendations camper Premium Member As they should be... ...Europeans are nervous about Comcast's terrible reputation here in the States as the company ponders a major European expansion. ...



imo, Comcast is only concerned about how much money they can rake in. Customers are viewed as an annoying means to that end, something that Comcast has to tolerate in order to make money. Purnerdyl00

join:2016-02-08

Queensbury, NY 293.8 23.7

·Charter

Ubee E31U2V1

Tenda Nova MW6

Netgear Orbi

8 recommendations Purnerdyl00 Member Comcast is coming Europe Sorry Europe, but Comcast will not give up the money and opportunities over in Europe. Comcast will assimilate you guys if you like it or not, and you guys will lower your blockade of regulations to allow Comcast to do this. Resisting is futile, remember that.

chip89

Premium Member

join:2012-07-05

Columbia Station, OH 7 recommendations chip89 Premium Member Should be. This should be blocked immediately.

Anon24700

@2600:8800.x 4 recommendations Anon24700 Anon Rather US expand overseas than overseas expand here? Don't we want US company to expand overseas and not the other way around?

Would it be preferable to say have a Chinese company buy Comcast no matter how much you hate Comcast? ohreally

join:2014-11-21 1 edit 4 recommendations ohreally Member Meh Sky is the closest thing to Comcast for UK pay TV. It is the dominant pay TV operator (satellite TV took off before cable really did) and its business practices and mindset mostly reflect that - "want football? Better pay up". In more recent years there has been some competition - cable is available to some of the country, but the bigger challenge came from BT, whose TV service also has national coverage, and more recently have been buying football rights of their own.



Sky has a relatively successful OTT service called Now TV - which people like because it's cheaper than Sky via satellite but has the good stuff - sports and Sky Atlantic (HBO). More a competitor to Netflix and Amazon than anyone else, though.



On the internet front (Sky is a massive wireline ISP in the UK), Comcast could never transplant their business practices. Far too much competition, everyone who can get Sky TV + broadband has at least two other choices for TV+BB and countless choices for broadband alone.



The EU or the other national regulators will probably have questions, but I can see the UK waving this through. They'd prefer it, actually, because it means not having to answer the question of "is Murdoch fit and proper to own Sky" - which is still relevant until Disney actually takes over

P Ness

You'Ve Forgotten 9-11 Already

Premium Member

join:2001-08-29

way way out 2 recommendations P Ness Premium Member Taxpayer funded buyout. Glad all of those tax avoidance and tax breaks allowed...is funding this deal.

And here people though that extra money was going to TRICKLE down to the rest.

hahahah