Cable operators have been outperforming their telco counterparts the last few quarters, largely thanks to true triple play bundles and faster speeds luring customers from the telcos. Time Warner Cable is continuing that trend with their third quarter earnings, which show the cable company added 214,000 new broadband customers on the quarter. Like Comcast, that's more than either AT&T or Verizon, both of whom have larger overall footprints. Cable operators are, for now, winning the broadband bundle battle.

As we mentioned last week, one more strong quarter of growth will push Comcast past AT&T to become the nation's largest broadband company. Similarly, Time Warner Cable's additions gives them 8.6 million broadband customers, slightly more than Verizon. Time Warner Cable also added 207,000 VoIP customers, a total that was down 25% from a year ago -- something Time Warner Cable attributes to consumers eliminating landline voice service entirely.

The cable company says that 20% of their customers are now taking the triple play. While sales are solid, they do admit the economy is playing a role. "The current economic environment is unprecedented," said CEO Glenn Britt in a conference call with analysts and reports this morning. "If people continue to lose their homes and their jobs, it would be naive to assume there would be no impact on our business."

While AT&T and Verizon have struggled with new subs, Time Warner Cable says that's now the fifth consecutive quarter they've had 200,000 or more net subscriber additions. According to the cable company, about a third of their customers are opting for the company's fastest "turbo" tier. Interestingly, while the conference call touched on everything from the election to switched digital video, the company made no reference to DOCSIS 3.0 upgrade plans.