To be sure, analysts said, the cable unit is still healthy and likely to resume solid growth in the next several years.

Revenue at the cable unit rose 14 percent, as did operating income, which was $711.1 million.

A decline in corporate expenses also helped offset the cable unit's performance.

Comcast has about 38,000 employees, with 20,000 in the cable unit.

AT&T hopes to offer a new stock to track the cable unit this summer.

It plans to spin off the cable unit as an independent company some time in 2002.

In the local markets where it operates, the cable unit's core business - television - remains relatively safe.

The cable unit's revenue rose 10 percent, to $2.2 billion.

Still, the cable unit had 372,000 digital phone subscribers at the end of the quarter, up from 152,000 last year.

Primarily, that means trying to find another company to acquire a minority interest in the cable unit.