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Comcast makes ‘sizable’ investment in Tile
Comcast has made a significant investment in Tile, TechCrunch reports, and the two companies will work together on products and marketing going forward. Though numbers aren't being disclosed, someone with knowledge of the deal told TechCrunch the investment was "sizable." The deal follows a move earlier this year that made Tile's tracking technology accessible through Xfinity Home.
Comcast's X1 set-top box helps you buy concert tickets
Comcast isn't stopping at offering movie tickets through the X1. It's using Ticketmaster's platform to sell Kelly Clarkson tickets with the help of its set-top box. Say "Kelly Clarkson Tour" to the remote and you'll go to a promo screen that will show you nearby concert dates and start the ticket purchasing process if you just have to see a show. Unfortunately, you can't complete the purchase on your TV -- you'll instead receive a text code on your phone that you use to finish the process. Still, it might be easier to browse on the big screen if you've already been curled up on the couch.
Comcast's Xfinity Stream app is now available on select Samsung TVs
Today, Xfinity announced that the Stream app, currently in beta, is now available on 2017 and 2018 model Samsung Smart TVs. This app allows Xfinity customers to watch live TV, on demand programming and recorded shows and movies from their DVRs.
Comcast adds three more ESPN networks to Xfinity X1
Comcast is bringing three new ESPN networks to Xfinity X1 just in time for the college football season. ESPN3, ACC Network Extra and SEC Network + are available on Xfinity X1 now, bringing with them coverage of over 150 live college football games as well as thousands of other events. The three networks will cover more than 5,000 events annually including international soccer, Grand Slam tennis matches and college basketball as well as other collegiate athletics from dozens of schools throughout the US.
Comcast will add Prime Video to Xfinity X1
Xfinity TV customers will soon have access to Prime Video as Comcast and Amazon announced today that the app will launch on X1 in the near future. The move will give Xfinity users easier access to their Prime Video features, including original series like Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, entire seasons of other shows, movies and add-on channels like Showtime and Starz. "Amazon Prime Video's growing list of originals, movies, shows, documentaries and kids' programming will be an excellent complement to the overall X1 viewing experience," Dana Strong, president of consumer services at Comcast, said in a statement. "We want to give customers easy access to all their favorite content in one place."
Nationwide Comcast outage is here to ruin your Friday
We hope you weren't planning to start your pre-Independence Day weekend with a streaming video marathon... you might have to put it on hold. Comcast has confirmed a nationwide outage affecting internet access, TV and voice. While it wasn't specific about which areas were affected, the worst-hit regions appeared to involve the Atlanta area, large portions of Florida and parts of the northeast (including Boston and Philadelphia). San Francisco and Seattle are also running into trouble.
Comcast says it’s no longer throttling heavy internet users' speeds
Back in 2007, Comcast was caught throttling BitTorrent traffic, a move that led to an FCC investigation and later, an order from the agency to stop the practice. In response, Comcast then decided to slow all traffic for its heaviest users and its congestion management system has been in place ever since. But now the company is getting rid of it saying improvements in its networks and other technologies have rendered the system unnecessary.
Xfinity website bug revealed home addresses and Wi-Fi passwords
This week, ZDNet reported that a Comcast website used to activate Xfinity routers was leaking personal data, including a person's home address, the name of the Wi-Fi network and password. This bug was first uncovered by two researchers, Karan Saini and Ryan Stevenson.
Comcast is now selling mesh WiFi 'pods' to its internet customers
It's been about a year since Comcast started revamping its Xfinity home internet services under the xFi brand. As part of the changes the company has been making, it started testing a simple way to build an in-home mesh network. After partnering with Plume, Xfinity started offering "xFi Pods" -- little nodes that plug into a power outlet that extend your WiFi network -- in three test markets. As of today, though, they're available nationwide to all Xfinity customers at the price of $120 for three pods or $200 for six.
Tile brings video and voice to its trackers with help from Comcast
Tile's Bluetooth trackers help people keep tabs on their keys, wallets and other items they don't want to lose, and today the company is making it a little easier for some to keep track of their important objects. Tile is teaming up with Comcast so that Xfinity customers with an X1 Voice Remote can simply ask where their item is. All they'll have to do is say something like, "Xfinity Home, find my wallet," or, "Xfinity Home, where are my keys?" And the last known location of the Tile associated with that object will be displayed on their TV screen.
Comcast increases Xfinity internet speeds across the northeast
If you're an Xfinity internet customer in the northeast, it might be worth running a speed test. Comcast just announced that it's bumping download speeds for internet users in a total of 14 northeastern states, from Maine down through Virginia. Each of the four internet tiers Xfinity offers will increase, though by how much will vary. The two higher-speed "Blast" and "Performance Pro" options increase from 200 and 150 Mbps to 250 and 200 Mbps, respectively. The basic "Performance" tier, meanwhile, jumps from 25 to 60 Mbps, and the modest "Starter" tier moves from 10 to 15 Mbps.
Comcast xFi customers get push notifications for WiFi activity
Comcast is introducing a new feature for its Xfinity xFi customers. Starting this week, users will receive a push notification anytime there is a change in their network. That means that if your child hops on the Wi-Fi when they're supposed to be asleep, now a push notification will rat them out.
Hulu Live TV subscribers can customize their Olympic coverage
The 2018 Winter Olympics are just around the corner and while anyone with access to NBC channels will be able to watch the competitions and events, those with Hulu Live TV will get to build a personalized viewing experience tailored to their interests. Starting today, Hulu will let those with a Live TV subscription pick which Olympic sports they're most interested in and from there, it will customize users' UIs based on those preferences. For example, users selecting luge and freestyle skiing as their favorites will see coverage of those events appear up top in the Olympic Winter Games section of the Hulu UI. They'll also see replays, highlights and athlete profiles surfaced.
Comcast adds Super Bowl-specific voice cues to Xfinity X1 service
Comcast has been expanding entertainment options Xfinity X1 platform, from fantasy football to Jackbox games on its cable boxes. But in anticipation of Americans' most entertaining weekend, the company has added new voice commands to help fans catch up on news before -- and during -- the Super Bowl.
Xfinity customers will get a ton of Winter Olympics content next month
The Olympics offer a unique technical challenge for TV broadcasters and cable companies every few years. With the 2018 Winter Olympics just a few weeks away, Comcast has announced its plans to offer a pretty huge variety of coverage for its Xfinity TV subscribers. While other cable providers get access to the same content from NBC that Comcast does, the company is enabling some solid features and packaging it in ways that are exclusive to Xfinity subscribers.
Comcast brings Jackbox's Party Packs to X1 set-top boxes
Comcast is rolling out some new gaming options for its X1 set-top box users. Multichannel News reports that Jackbox Games has begun to show up on X1 this month with two gaming packages being offered. Jackbox Party Packs 3 and 4 are available for $25 each and include games like Quiplash, Trivia Murder Party, Fibbage and Monster Seeking Monster.
TiVo sues Comcast again over alleged patent infringement
Though TiVo and Comcast just wrapped up a round of patent infringement litigation, TiVo's looking for another go. Yesterday, it filed lawsuits in California and Massachusetts alleging that Comcast's X1 set-top boxes are infringing on no less than eight of its patents. "Through decades-long investment in research and development, Rovi has created innovations that delight consumers in their day-to-day entertainment experience. Our commitment to our customers and stockholders compels us to protect these valuable inventions from unlicensed use," TiVo CEO Enrique Rodriguez said in a statement. TiVo was acquired by Rovi in 2016. The merged companies took the more recognizable name TiVo and at joining, they together held over 6,000 patents.
Xfinity's Gigabit router will soon double as a smart home hub
Comcast's Xfinity division has made some forays into the smart home world already: Xfinity Home started out as a home security product, but it now handles a number of common devices like locks, thermostats, lightbulbs and so on. However, the millions of people who subscribe just to Xfinity Internet haven't been able to take advantage of these features; you need to also have an Xfinity Home subscription. That's going to change this year: Comcast just announced that millions of its internet customers will be able to use their Xfinity Gateway routers as smart home automation hubs, free of charge.
Comcast’s xFi Advanced Gateway modem is now available nationwide
It's no secret that modems provided by your ISP can leave a lot to be desired. While we generally recommend you use your own hardware when it comes to your internet connection, plenty of people just go with the standard default modem and router. Comcast is making that process just a little bit easier thanks to the xFi Advanced Gateway modem and router. The modem, which the company is billing as the most advanced device it's ever made, made its debut back in May, but starting today it's available in every market that Comcast offers gigabit internet.
Comcast's Xfinity app will be available on Sony smart TVs in 2018
It's a strange time in the world of cable television, with more people cutting the cord these days and an ever-increasing amount of internet-enabled devices (like Apple TV and Roku) and smart TVs. Venerable cable companies like Viacom have to to find ways to get their content out to where the viewers actually are. Comcast is in the same boat, which is why it makes sense that the cable business is partnering with Sony to get its Xfinity app on the television-maker's Android-based sets.
