Faster Broadband Tiers, Bundling Could Insulate From Cord Cutting, Moffett Says

Cable has little to fear from cord cutting -- especially from customers dropping their video service for a competing over-the-top offering -- since much of that lost revenue will come back from charging for stand-alone broadband and from customers opting for higher speed tiers, said MoffettNathanson analyst Craig Moffett wrote investors Thursday. His analysis is based in part on a Survata survey of 507 online respondents, with the analyst saying the results indicating those who said they are or would consider dropping their pay-TV service for OTT also would upgrade to a faster broadband service if they switched, even though most of them said their current speed was sufficient for satisfactory Internet video. Moffett said that and the net recovery that could come from dismantling a bundled discount provide "dramatic" protection against cord cutting.