Comcast's live TV streaming service could launch by year’s end
Though no official date or price has been set just yet.
Earlier this year, rumors circulated that Comcast was planning to launch Xfinity Instant TV, a live TV streaming service for Comcast internet customers that don't have a cable package. During an earnings conference call today, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts and NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke said the service could be launched before the year's end, though no official date was set.
Xfinity Instant TV will largely be a more widely released, rebranded version of Comcast Stream, which is available in select areas of the country now. Previous reports noted that the service would be priced around $15 per month, but Roberts and Burke said today that the company has been testing prices. So, it's unclear what the official cost will be as of now.
Of course, Comcast is entering a market others have already been dabbling in. Time Warner began testing a similar service in 2015 with its internet customers and Hulu and YouTube have launched their own live TV services that aren't internet provider-specific, something Sling TV has been doing for a while.
Comcast execs are still skeptical about live TV streaming though. In regards to existing services, Burke said, "[They're] doing about as we expected they would do and that is they are not all that material to our business. It is a very tough business, and we, as before, we are skeptical it will be a very large business or profitable business, and they are off to a relatively slow start."
