Technically Philly » Comcast

Comcast joins Time Warner, three other cable providers on national WiFi network

Christopher Wink — Thu, 24 May 2012 13:00:54 +0000

Five of the nation’s largest cable companies — Comcast Corp., Bright House Networks, Cablevision, Cox Communications and Time Warner Cable — are creating a seamless national WiFi network to enable cable broadband subscribers to stream data or access the Internet through smart phones, tablets or laptop computers, the companies said Monday. The initial network consists of 50,000 WiFi hot spots, most of them currently in the Philadelphia-to-New York corridor. [INQUIRER]

Read about why these companies are banding together in this report from Marketplace Tech.

Comcast struggles to quantify TV Everywhere iPad viewership [Roundup]

Christopher Wink — Thu, 24 May 2012 12:30:10 +0000

Every Thursday morning at 8:30 a.m. EST, find all the stories you need to know about your friendly telecommunications giant in the Comcast Roundup. Get an email subscription for our weekly Comcast roundup or other news updates.

Cable companies offer free Wi-Fi — what’s the catch?
TV Everywhere’s Counting Problem [All Things Digital] — “Witness Comcast’s announcement yesterday, made at the cable industry’s annual convention in Boston, that it has been working with Nielsen on a plan to count viewers when they watched video on an iPad*, using Comcast’s Xfinity app. For various technical reasons, this is much harder than you’d think, and the two companies have already been beavering away at this for 18 months.”
Extra lane: how Comcast assures that Xfinity TV on Xbox 360 works well [Ars Technica]
New Comcast services threaten wireless text and data revenue [Cnet]
Comcast CEO Roberts not attending The Cable Show [FierceCable]

The Cable Show 2012: Verizon, Comcast Unveil ‘viewdini’ Mobile Search Product Signs on XFinity [Multichannel News]
Comcast service would connect home phone line to smartphones [LA Times]
Cable firms warn against heavy government oversight of Web [LA Times]
Comcast Asks FCC to Revoke Boston’s New License to Reregulate Rates FCC’s Media Bureau had recertified the city in April [Broadcasting & Cable]
Cable Show 2012: Comcast To Take X1 Guide To Some Existing Set-Tops, Too CTO Werner Says MSO to Deploy Cloud-Based Interface to RNG 150 Boxes [Multichannel News]
Comcast: An Impressive 9-Month Run Has Sent The Stock Up To Very High Levels [Seeking Alpha]
Comcast Ventures Join $12M Round for BodyMedia [Citybizlist]
Comcast Spotlight Forms Advanced-Ad Unit, Teams With SMGx ‘CM 360′ to Focus on Targeting, Interactivity and Measurement [Multichannel News]
Adobe Names Three New Members to Its Board of Directors [Business Wire] — Including Amy Banse, the managing director and head of funds for Comcast Ventures.
Fake Comcast workers flee after home invasion [Houston Chronicle]

Comcast launching Skype video calling for $9.95 month [Roundup]

Christopher Wink — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:30:04 +0000

Comcast’s NBC Bets on Comedies to Boost Last Place Schedule [Bloomberg]
Comcast’s Non-Denial Denial On Traffic Prioritization And Net Neutrality [TechCrunch]
Comcast fires back over Xfinity TV on Xbox 360, says no way, no how it’s violating net neutrality[Engadget]
Comcast Launching Skype Video Calling for $9.95 a Month [PCmag]
Shots fired: NBC Sports Net shoots back at ESPN’s Skipper [NBC Sports] — “The simmering rivalry between ESPN and the new NBC Sports Network is flaring up a bit.”

Upfronts 2012: NBC’s Harbert calls for better measurement tools [LA Times: Company Town]
NBC’s channels to broadcast Olympics [inquirer]
Comcast Entertainment Studios Names Mayer VP of Development Will be tasked with developing new series for the studio [Broadcasting & Cable]
Comcast, Aramark also have visions of Olympic glory [Philadelphia Inquirer]
Comcast Brings Family and Friends Closer Together with the Launch of Skype on Xfinity [Business wire] — press release
Why the Street Should Love Comcast’s Earnings [msnbc]
Comcast denies favoring Xfinity video content [Cnet]
Comcast CTO: VOD To Xbox Goes Over A Dedicated IP Path [Multichannel News] — “Rebutting accusations that Comcast is violating the FCC’s network neutrality rules, chief technology officer Tony Werner said the MSO is sending VOD to Xbox 360 consoles over a separate, additional segment of IP bandwidth but isn’t “prioritizing” that over Internet traffic.”
Day lets Comcast employees give back, by the thousands [Salt Lake Tribune] — Comcast Cares Day
Comcast, iRobot and Google Support STEM Programs in Massachusetts Public Schools Through Science from Scientists [Exec]
City Year Names Arthur R. Block of Comcast Corporation the 2012 Idealist of the Year [citybiz Philadelphia]
Comcast awards $92,000 in scholarships to New Jersey high school [PR Newswire]

Comcast will sell ‘substantial’ equity stake in A&E cable network [Roundup]

Christopher Wink — Thu, 10 May 2012 12:30:10 +0000

Comcast to Sell ‘Substantial’ Equity Stake in A&E [Bloomberg] — “Comcast’s NBC Universal entertainment business exercised an option to sell a “substantial” portion of its equity in A&E Television Networks, owner of the Lifetime and History cable channels. “
Senator Al Franken questions Comcast on Xbox 360 [TG Daily] — “Comedian-turned-Senator Al Franken wants the FCC to look into the way Comcast is offering streaming video on the Xbox 360.”
Comcast offers ESPN via iPhone, iPad [Inquirer] — “Comcast Corp. made available to its cable-TV subscribers the WatchESPN service for iPhone and iPad devices, part of the TV Everywhere initiative.”
7 ways Comcast is killing the cable killers [Gigaom]

Comcast customers lose access to e-mails; company investigating cause [Newark Star Ledger] — “Comcast e-mail customers throughout the nation have unable to use their e-mail service for hours this afternoon and this evening because of an unknown technical glitch, triggering a deluge of complaints on a customer service forum.”
NBCU Plans $190 Million In NYC Upgrades Programmer to Renovate 30 Rock, Other Installations over Next Two Years [Multichannel News]
Comcast’s first-quarter earnings rise 30 percent on Super Bowl advertising, more broadband [Washington Post] — “Comcast Corp., the country’s largest cable company, reported a 30 percent profit increase in the first quarter, beating expectations on the strength of Super Bowl advertising and its popular broadband service.”
Subscriber data from Internet service providers [Associated Press] — “Comcast Corp. says it added 439,000 Internet subscribers to end with 18.6 million. That was the best quarterly result in four years.”
Fans file class-action suit against Flyers [Chicago Tribune]
Comcast lands a sweet Metro Ethernet deal with Sarris Candies [CED] — “Comcast continues to rack up customer wins for its Metro Ethernet service, with the latest addition being Pennsylvania-based Sarris Candies.”

Comcast adds Internet customers, loses cable subscribers, profits jump [Roundup]

Christopher Wink — Thu, 03 May 2012 12:30:49 +0000

Comcast reports jump in profits, revenues [Inquirer] — “Helped by Super Bowl advertising and still-surging demand for Internet services, Comcast Corp. reported a 30 percent jump in profits to $1.2 billion and a 22.7 percent boost in revenue to $14.9 billion during the first quarter”
For Comcast, data equals big dollars [Gigaom] — “During the first quarter of 2012 (ending March 31), the company added 439,000 net new high-speed Internet customers to bring the final tally to 18.58 million”
Comcast Falls After Reporting Video-Subscriber Decline [Bloomberg]
Comcast’s losses in cable subscribers continue [San Francisco Chronicle] — “37,000: That’s how many cable TV subscribers Comcast lost in the first quarter.”
Comcast Must Put Bloomberg TV Among News Channels, FCC Says [Bloomberg] — “Comcast (CMCSA) Corp. must carry Bloomberg Television near other news channels on cable systems in the 35 largest U.S. media markets, the Federal Communications Commission said today. “
Comcast Cares Day 2012: A Day in Photos [Comcast Voices] — “67,000 Comcast employees, their families and their friends offered their time and elbow grease to nearly 650 projects in 39 states and Washington, D.C. Comcast and NBCUniversal volunteers painted schools; planted trees and gardens; cleaned up parks and trails; and beautified community centers.”

Comcast Awards $173,000 in scholarships to Pennsylvania high school seniors [Sacramento Bee]
On the Call: Comcast executive on Xfinity iPad app [CBS Money Watch] — With Neil Smit
NBC Universal’s Style Network and DailyCandy Team Up for StyleCandy [Ad Age]
Comcast CEO Roberts says deal will close in 2012 [Philadelphia Business Journal] — “Comcast Corp. Chairman, CEO and President Brian Roberts said he expects the controversial deal in which a joint venture between Comcast and two other cable-television firms would sell its 122 Advanced Wireless Services spectrum licenses to Verizon Wireless for $3.6 billion to close in the latter part of the year.”
Summary Box: Comcast 1Q net rises 30 pct [Fox 6 Alabama]
Comcast Business Class Services Recruits VARs For The Cloud [CRN]
Hoping for FiOS, some cities now feel abandoned by Verizon [Inquirer] — “Years after Verizon Communications Inc. wired the suburbs of Boston, Buffalo, and Baltimore with superfast Internet, more than one million residents in the poorer urban neighborhoods of those metro areas are still waiting for FiOS.”
More Comcast Cares coverage and the below wrap up video here.

Comcast gets blasted about ‘net neutrality’ by Netflix CEO on Facebook [Roundup]

Christopher Wink — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 12:30:41 +0000

Netflix CEO’s Comcast Complaints Draw in FCC [Wall Street Journal: Digits] — Reed Hastings
Reed Hastings Goes After Comcast, Again, on Facebook. Again. [All Things Digital] — More on the Netflix CEO
Councilman Jim Kenney thinks FiOs is dragging its feet [CBS 3] “We were happy to have competition with our current major cable provider, Comcast. But we want to make sure that every neighborhood in the city is getting built out with the Fios, and not just neighborhoods that can afford to pay the fees,” he said. Philadelphia Councilman Thinks Verizon May Be Foot-Dragging On FiOS Construction

Judge: Comcast customers will get their day in court [Inquirer] – “Nine years after filing their first legal complaint, Comcast customers who contend that the cable television giant undercut competitors with unfair pricing policies and other anticompetitive strategies can take their claims to a jury.”
Comcast and satellite companies at impasse over SportsNet programming [Inquirer] — “If you’re a sports fan and a cable subscriber, you could have caught much of this winter and spring’s action on Comcast SportsNet, which carries a majority of this city’s baseball, hockey and basketball games. But you still can’t watch most of your local teams’ games on Dish Network or DirecTV — unlike almost everywhere else in the country”
Comcast Promotes Melanie Penna to SVP of Human Resources for Comcast Cable [citybizlist]
NBC-Owned Stations, Comcast Sports Group Strike Ad Sales Partnership
Station Group to Sell National Advertising for Comcast RSNs in Philly, DC, New England, Northwest (Multichannel News)
Hulu to Boost Spending on Content This Year by 67% [Wall Street Journal: Digits]
Comcast Is First U.S. ISP to Offer IPv6 to Home Gateway Users [Network World]
Comcast Tests Network DVR in Boston [Light Reading Cable]

Comcast spent $250k in Q1 2011 on lobbying, mostly for SOPA, PIPA [Roundup]

Christopher Wink — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 12:30:33 +0000

Bloomberg takes another FCC shot at Comcast [Los Angeles Times: Company Town] — “Bloomberg LP has filed another complaint with the Federal Communications Commission against Comcast Corp., claiming that the cable giant is thumbing its nose at conditions the government put on it as part of approving its 2011 takeover of NBCUniversal”
Comcast spent heavily in support of anti-online piracy bills [The Hill] — “A look at early disclosures by the company’s outside lobbying consultants shows over a quarter of a million dollars spent during the first quarter of 2011 alone, much of it on consultants to lobby for SOPA and its Senate companion bill, the Protect IP Act.”
Comcast May Face Rate Regulation in Boston, FCC Says [Bloomberg]
Comcast Files Patent Application for Web TV Tech [Zatz Not Funny]

Comcast updates Xfinity TV for iOS with DVR management controls [The Verge]
Comcast Honored as Top 10 Company for Its Work with Veteran-Owned Businesses [EON]
Comcast Xfinity On Demand rolling out to TiVo Premiere subscribers in SF Bay Area [The Verge]
Comcast to test IPTV network at MIT [Fierce Cable]
Comcast, TWC Still Bullish On Interactive TV [Multichannel News] — “Two Biggest Operators See New Opportunities for EBIF Platform”
Comcast Cares Day set for April 16 [Journal Standard] — The Illinois version of the Comcast day of volunteering
Comcast to Sponsor Beautification Day at Buri Buri [South San Francisco Patch]
At Large : Comcast gets the news, the sequel [MVTimes] — More squabbling in Maratha’s Vineyard over Comcast service

Comcast’s Philly in Focus: Mayor Nutter and Lisa Nutter launch public beta of local video web hub [VIDEO]

Yael Borofsky — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 15:30:11 +0000

Meet Philly in Focus, the Philadelphia community media hub created as part of Comcast‘s Project Open Voice pilot, which launched in public beta last week following remarks by Mayor Nutter and his wife Lisa.

Philly in Focus is an online open access, interactive media portal for Philadelphia content producers at all levels, young and old, individual and organizational. The media hub is one of six pilots being launched by Comcast, as part of its national initiative Project Open Voice. The three-year program is part of an agreement Comcast made with the FCC when it acquired NBC early last year.

The site is not meant to have the scale of a Youtube or Vimeo, but instead offer local eyeballs to video content produced for Philadelphians. Or at least that’s what Comcast told the FCC they’d do.

With the public access television network PhillyCAM‘s studio at 7th and Ranstead as a backdrop, both Nutters addressed a crowd of about 50 from the press corps, Comcast, and the Philadelphia community. Mayor Nutter discussed the relevance of this new community media hub to enhancing education, business, and digital access, as well as the city’s other social media efforts, such as Change by Us Philly web tool.

The Mayor said Philly In Focus would be a valuable addition to the city’s social media outreach, which was recently recognized as the country’s 7th most social media savvy city government.

“It’s what the Continental Congress would have used had this tool been available. They would have gotten the information out much quicker all across the United States if Philly in Focus had been around at that time,” the Mayor said, then acknowledged the comment was not in his notes.

Mayor Nutter also said Philadelphia was excited to be chosen as a pilot city in the Project Open Voice initiative.

“Philly in Focus is another opportunity to literally take the roof off of City Hall —though we ask you not to touch our roof, actually — and allow more Philadelphians to see what’s really going on,” said Mayor Nutter.

Lisa Nutter said she thinks Philly In Focus will be a place for Philadelphian’s to share the stories they want the community to hear.

“What it’s also doing is providing a nontraditional media approach to covering these stories, stories that, as the website suggests, sometimes get lost in the shuffle,” Lisa said.

Lisa said the power of digital tools like Philly in Focus was proven to her through her work with Digital OnRamps and Philadelphia Academies.

“This to us is another way to help kids produce content,” Lisa said. “I’m hoping this can be used by kids in public high schools in Philly.”

Lisa then introduced her husband, the Mayor, as a “lover of technology” who can “at any moment hold two Blackberrys and spin an iPhone on top of his head at one time.”

Other speakers at the launch included Civic content partners, Kerri Kennedy, the executive director of Women’s Campaign International, PhillyCAM executive director Gretjen Clausing, as well as Comcast representatives, Director of Government and Regulatory Affairs, Sharon Powell-Lee and Director of Local Media Development Paul Wright.

Philly In Focus has been live in beta since January, but the press conference yesterday marks the official launch of the beta site. Wright told Technically Philly that Comcast plans to move the site out of beta in mid-summer.

Wright says the beta launch has taught Comcast some useful lessons about Philadelphia as well as its plans to Project Open Voice in other markets, beyond the six pilots. But making things simple, Wright says, has been the biggest takeaway of the last few months.

“Our goals here are to help organizations find their local audiences better. We need to ensure that simple process,” said Wright. “On the consumer side, it’s to be determined. The feedback has been making sure you have a variety of discovery methods.”

Wright says Comcast sees the initiative as complementary to video and content sharing giants like YouTube and Vimeo, and has included easy ways for users to port content over to Philly In Focus.

“What we’re trying to do here is just provide the local entry point,” Wright said.

Philly In Focus has also partnered with the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) to integrate its tourism blog, Uwishunu‘s latest project, Philly 101 into the hub. Philly 101 is 101-day video series showcasing locals Philadelphians talking about what they “wish you knew” about the city, as Technically Philly reported.

To see Lisa Nutter and Mayor Michael Nutters full remarks, as well as remarks from the press conference host, Gretjen Clausing, check out the videos below.

Lisa Nutter:

Michael Nutter:

Gretjen Clausing on PhillyCAM:

Comcast partners with Oprah, spars with Boxee [Roundup]

Christopher Wink — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 12:30:10 +0000

Comcast Strikes Deal with OWN [Zacks] — “Comcast Corporation has recently entered an agreement with Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) to increase the viewership of the channel by making it available to existing Comcast subscribers”
Big Media Tussles With Tiny Boxee Over the Future of TV [Bloomberg] — “The company is fighting a proposed Federal Communications Commission rule backed by Comcast Corp., News Corp. and Walt Disney Co. that would let cable operators encrypt the TV transmissions that are delivered to U.S. homes. “
No, Comcast is not breaking the Internet…again [Cnet] — “Service that allows consumers to use their Xbox for viewing Comcast programming has prompted cries of imminent disaster for the Internet. But the service doesn’t violate FCC’s Open Internet rules.”
From Google to Comcast, Tech Giants Are Shaping Your Home’s Smart Future [ReadWriteWeb]
Are Amazon and Comcast Really Threats to Netflix? [Daily Finance]
Reed Hastings Will Get His HBO Go as Comcast Nears Deal on Xbox [Media Decoder: New York Times] — “The (HBO Go) app, which offers all of the pay cable channel’s shows, movies, and documentaries, will be available to Comcast’s 22.3 million Xfinity subscribers via the Xbox as early as this week”
Comcast Sizes Up All-IP Set-Top [Light Reading Cable]
Comcast Corporation Names D’Arcy F. Rudnay Chief Communications Officer [Business Wire]
Apple Doesn’t Need To Make the TV of the Future [Slate] — “The revolution is already here—and it’s called the Xbox.” Comcast has partnered to with Xbox around delivery
Comcast targets Twin Cities’ mid-size businesses [Pioneer Press]

Comcast Xfinity TV app joins Xbox Live, won’t count against data cap [Roundup]

Christopher Wink — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 12:30:57 +0000

Facebook Taps Former Comcast Exec To Head Outreach Program [National Journal]
The technical and legal realities of Comcast’s Xbox cap spat [Gigaom]
Xbox 360′s Comcast Xfinity TV app in beta testing, won’t count against data caps when it launches [Engadget]
Microsoft Xbox Live to add Comcast, HBO Go today [Gigaom]
Comcast, Verizon face critics at Senate hearing [Inquirer]
How will Comcast ‘beat the brains’ out of Verizon FiOS? [FierceCable]
AT&T, Comcast, Other ISPs Urged by U.S. to Step Up Cybersecurity on Home PCs [Bloomberg]

A Look At Comcast’s Growth Prospects [city biz list]
Comcast Business takes a continuous improvement model to CEM [FierceTelecom]
Comcast to introduce new business phone service [Inquirer] — “a new package of high-definition business phones with software features that, for instance, allow sales staff or other employees to transfer on Microsoft Outlook an incoming phone call to another phone or phones.”
Comcast Rolls Business Voice Into the Cloud [Light Reading Cable]
Apps Helping Comcast Market Its Digital Library [Hispanic Business]
Comcast, NBCUniversal pledge to hire 1,000 veterans [Today Show]
Comcast Promotes Three Women to Senior VP Operator elevates Tracy Pitcher, Rebecca Scilingo and Amy Stipandic [Broadcasting & Cable]
Comcast Applauds Work of the FCC’s CSRIC on Online Security and Safety [Comcast Voices]
Comcast Adds Text Appeal For Voice Subs [Multichannel News] — “Comcast — looking to give customers two new reasons to keep their landlines — is offering Xfinity Voice Unlimited Nationwide plan subscribers free, unlimited text messaging from mobile apps plus the ability to receive transcribed voicemail messages via e-mail.”
Comcast Corporation Names D’Arcy F. Rudnay Chief Communications Officer [Business Wire]
Comcast Pulls Back On IPv6 Rollout, Citing Netgear Modem Glitch [Multichannel News]
Comcast to Host First Quarter 2012 Earnings Conference Call [Business Wire] — May 2