Comcast has started issuing an additional round of regional sports-related rebates to some of its pay TV customers.
The rebates come after several regional programmers who have deals with Comcast were unable to provide live sporting events this year due to the ongoing coronavirus health pandemic. A similar rebate was offered to some Comcast customers in October.
In an e-mail obtained by some customers, Comcast said it was working with these programmers to obtain reimbursement for the lack of promised sporting events and would pass along those refunds to customers in the form of bill credits.
“We are happy to bring you a courtesy adjustment in your bill this month for sporting events and broadcasts which were put on hold this year from April through July,” an e-mail obtained by one Comcast customer said. “We have continued to work hard to recover the fees regional sports networks charged us during the hiatus.”
Comcast said the refund is being offered to customers even if they received the October rebate for the same programming.
The rebate is expected to vary based on a Comcast user’s address and the type of regional sports channels they receive, with the average rebate hovering around $20.
Earlier this month, financial news outlet Bloomberg said cable and satellite TV companies may eventually issue a collective $1.1 billion in sports-related rebates to customers. Companies that have or are considering rebates include AT&T (AT&T U-Verse, DirecTV), Verizon (Fios TV) and Charter/Spectrum, Bloomberg said, citing information obtained from the analysis firm LightShed Partners. Verizon was the first company to issue sports-related rebates to customers earlier this year.
“We at Verizon remain resolute in our plan to pass on the COVID-related refunds that we receive from regional sports networks to impacted Fios TV customers,” a Verizon spokesperson said. The spokesperson added that customers could start receiving rebates as soon as January 2021.
