Comcast exec an evolve-or-die advocate

PHILADELPHIA -- Mike Cavanagh, one of the nation's top banking executives at JPMorgan Chase and now Comcast Corp.'s new chief financial officer, says the Philadelphia company's biggest "enemy" is complacency, hoping that consumer trends won't change and that Comcast remains the big cable company.

Comcast's destiny is "in our hands," Cavanagh said at the Comcast Center last week.

He added, "All businesses have to modify their game to be relevant to millennials."

A protege of the legendary banker Jamie Dimon at JPMorgan, Cavanagh joined Comcast in May after Comcast lost its regulatory battle to purchase Time Warner Cable Inc.

He replaces CFO Michael Angelakis, who negotiated the successful deal for NBCUniversal and the abandoned takeover of Time Warner Cable.

Observers believe that Cavanagh could face a more constrained tenure than Angelakis because of wary regulators. But Cavanagh said he did not expect to be Comcast's "steward" and has been looking at how the company can grow.

Cavanagh is a straight talker and "not a politician or any of that stuff," said Dimon, JPMorgan Chase's chief executive officer. He said he expects Cavanagh -- who was lured to Comcast with a compensation package valued around $24 million -- to be a valuable partner for Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, NBCUniversal head Steve Burke, and others to "help drive the company."

Comcast abandoned the $45 billion Time Warner Cable acquisition in April after spending more than $400 million on lawyers, lobbyists and consultants. The Justice Department and the Federal Communications Commission indicated they would fight the deal, forcing Comcast to walk.

"In some ways, it's a shame that Time Warner Cable did not happen and in some ways it's a blessing in disguise," Cavanagh said. He said the resources that Comcast would have spent integrating Time Warner into Comcast could now be refocused on developing new products and improving the Comcast customer experience.

Cavanagh, meanwhile, has been immersing himself in Comcast's businesses -- from the blockbuster-factory Universal movie studio to Wi-Fi.

"I know enough to be dangerous," Cavanagh cracked in response to a question as to whether Comcast believes it should buy a wireless company.

The wireless question has gained urgency since AT&T, one of the nation's largest cellular phone operators, acquired DirecTV this summer. The deal created the nation's largest pay-TV operator by combining AT&T's U-verse business with DirecTV.

Wall Street analysts also have looked to Europe for future trends on telecom investments.

"In Europe, the flavor of the month is quad-play," Cavanagh said, referring to companies that offer TV, Internet, wireline phone, and wireless phone services as a package.

But Cavanagh noted that Americans were different consumers. "We have the wherewithal to go down that road," Cavanagh said of quad-play. "It's something we should pay attention to, and you can count on us putting some time into the issue."

International companies also could be acquisition targets. Analysts and company insiders say Comcast could consider acquiring media or TV distribution companies overseas.

"I do travel the world and I do have a passport," Cavanagh said. "There is opportunity out there."

Business on 09/03/2015

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