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.

• Will Smith now part owner of the 76ers [Marquee: CNN] More on the Comcast-Spectacor sale of the 76ers from the Inquirer here.
• Reducing the Cost of Logging In to Learn [New York times] — On issues of access, mentioning Comcast’s Internet Essential program
• Comcast-Spectacor subsidiary Front Row names president  [Philadelphia Business Journal] — “Chris Lencheski was named president of Front Row Marketing Services, a Comcast-Spectacor subsidiary that negotiates sports sponsorships, naming rights deals and other advertising and vendor rights agreements for professional and college sports teams, public assembly venues and municipalities.”
• “The Comcast Holiday Spectacular 2011″ Featuring Pennsylvania Ballet [Comcast blog] — Video being shot for this year’s Comcast Center video
• Comcast Ventures Appoints Tina Warner to Lead Communications, Marketing and Brand Awareness from New Headquarters in the Bay Area [Business Wire press release]
• United Way Campaign 2011 – We Give Because… [United Way] — See video of Comcast employees talking about donating below.

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

• Comcast’s Roberts hosts President Obama on Martha’s Vineyard [Inquirer]
• Comcast ends action against DirecTV [Philadelphia Business Journal] — DirecTV dropped the ads it had been running about Comcast’s NFL Sunday Ticket package, featuring claims that Comcast reps felt were false and misleading. More form paidContent

• Versus will expand its college football programming [USA Today]
• Latinos here to stay, so deal with it, NBC [San Francisco Gate]
• Comcast Rolls Out Metro E, Adds Regional Partners [Channel Partners] — “Less than six months after the controlled rollout of its partner program, Comcast Business Services (Booth #1500 at the Channel Partners Conference & Expo) is adding new regional partners and announcing the availability of its Metro Ethernet services through the indirect channel. ” H/T Philly Tech News
• Take a Look Inside CIM Lab Week [Comcast blog] — Watch below a video interview with Tom Blaxland Jason Press, the CTO of Comcast Interactive Media, about the ‘science fair’ held of creative, collaborative work by Comcast employees

Click to enlarge the Motrin advertisement.

You’ve seen news of the new $10 million, 7,372 square foot HD video screen at Citizens Bank Park but, ahead of tonight’s series kickoff with the Mets, read the video tech junkie’s guide to the upgrade:

Going into the 2011 MLB season, an absurdly deep starting rotation isn’t the only asset the Philadelphia Phillies can gloat over. The team are also stacked with weapons in the video department, having upgraded Citizens Bank Park’s control room to HD and installed the largest HD display in the National League: a 76-ft.-high x 97-ft.-wide Daktronics video board in left field.

H/T Colin Weir

• Philadelphia Syndrome: In Search of a Cure [Matt Monihan] — One of the leads in the Northern Liberties Devnuts co-working crew gives his take on Philly defeatism
• Philadelphia region lags in job creation, according to U.S. figures [Philadelphia Business Journal]
• SEPTA to sell ads on its website [PlanPhilly]
• Protesters disrupt speech by Sunoco CEO [PhillyInc: Inquirer] — “Protesters interrupted a speech being given by Sunoco Inc. chairman and chief executive Lynn L. Elsenhans at a luncheon at the Philadelphia Marriott Downtown Thursday afternoon.”
• 76er Evan Turner’s life now an app [Philadelphia Business Journal] — “”Philadelphia 76ers rookie Evan Turner has joined forces with XCO SportsLink to develop a free smartphone application that will provide fans with exclusive access into his life on and off the court.”
• Emotional tributes to Baldino at Pennsylvania Bio Awards [Philadelphia Business Journal] — Frank Baldino, the life sciences legend in the region, was honored after passing last year
• Straight talk about the Japanese nuclear plant disaster [PlanPhilly] — By a local nuclear power plant operator, not long before Temple University-Japan students were evacuated.
• AT&T’s ‘river of data’ flows through Philadelphia [Philly Inc: Inquirer] — Tour of their regional control center

How Texting Is Protecting People in Africa [GSK blog] — GlaxoSmithKline

Valley Forge man takes on Google [NewsWorks] — WHYY gives Gabe Weinberg of Duck Duck Go the love.

DB Schenker moves area operations to Philadelphia [Philadelphia Business Journal] — “DB Schenker, an international transportation and logistics company, has relocated regional operations to Philadelphia, bringing 130 employees”

University City Science Center adds two tenants [Philadelphia Business Journal] — Adaptimmune LLC and Optofluidics

WorldGate CEO and CFO resign amid cash squeeze [Philly Inc: Inquirer] – “Video-phone maker WorldGate Communications Inc. is once again facing a cash crunch and has responded by beginning to cut its workforce by 65 percent.”

Pennsylvania Bio awards Wednesday in Philadelphia [Philadelphia Business Journal]

Philadelphia Soul opener to be a real tweet [Philadelphia Business Journal] — Arena football leveraged league-endorsed social media chatter during the opener

The Regional Planning Association put together a video, seen below, on the importance of investing in high-speed rail, featuring interviews with many different parties including Paul Levy, President and CEO of Center City District.

Why Build High-Speed Rail in the Northeast? from Regional Plan Association on Vimeo.

DEFINITE READS

• PhillyInc: Ongoing sea change at the Navy Yard [Inquirer] — The Naval Yard is rockin’, so can we get the Broad Street Line extended there?
• U.S. Drilling Companies Get Moment in Spotlight [Wall Street Journal] — “Two PA drilling equipment companies, Schramm Inc. of West Chester and Center Rock Inc. of Berlin.” H/T Keystone Edge
• Pa. No. 2 on solar job creation list [Pittsburgh Business Times] — With 282 solar companies and 6,700 solar jobs, Pennsylvania is only behind California.

Below, ‘flat growth’ for the region, saving NFL players and more.

MIGHT BE OF INTEREST

• As NFL grapples with head injuries, company says product can reduce concussions [Philadelphia Business Journal] — A Kennett Square company
• PhillyInc: Flat ‘growth’ is the forecast for Philly economy [Inquirer]
• Chamber Celebrates its 210th Annual Meeting [Chamber of Commerce blog]
• PhillyInc: Chamber to expand Select Greater Philadelphia’s mission [Inquirer]
• Going Against the Migraine: The Rapid Rise of NuPathe [Keystone Edge] — The pharmaceutical startup founded by Jane Hollingsworth, with whom we spoke last September.
• Positive results for NuPathe’s migraine patch [Philadelphia Business Journal] — More on their latest moves

GIVE A GLANCE

• Shooters to shine at Philadelphia Film Festival [Philadelphia Business Journal] — The Old City video production company, which we profiled in May 2009, is involved with a handful of the festival’s films.
• New SEPTA railcars still rolling into problems [PlanPhilly] — Problems with wiring and other advancements
• N.J. Technology Council event at Cira Centre [Philadelphia Business Journal] — Event held yesterday

Every Friday morning, we make sure you didn t miss anything with Friday Tech Links.

DEFINITE READS

• How Philadelphia’s Navy Yard could lead the way in energy efficiency [Smart Planet] — A Q&A with Hank Foley, the Penn State dean who will help lead the $129 project in South Philadelphia.
• Economists reveal Philadelphia’s economic identity as ‘thinking’ region [PhillyInc, Inquirer] — A report puts Philadelphia in the ‘thinking’ category, one of 12, along with cities like New York City, San Diego and Portland, Maine, as opposed to, say, the ‘innovating’ cities of Boston and Raleigh, N.C.

Below, NPR takes on Harrisburg university’s social media experiment, four in region make Forbes’ richest list and more.

MIGHT BE OF INTEREST

• Pa. University Bans Facebook, Twitter For A Week [NPR All Things Considered] — Harrisburg University of Science and Technology school gives it a try.
• Science of NFL Football: #3 Vectors [Science Cheerleader] — The site from a former Sixers cheerleader and Penn alumnae dives into the deep science of football, one subject at a time. Fascinating.
• visitPA and Foursquare In Numbers [Geekadelphia] — We reported on the state tourism agency using the social platform here.
• Philly Organizations in the Running for a Free iPhone Application [Geekadelphia]
• In this digital age, a cycle begins when businesses relocate [PhillyInc, Inquirer] — Columnist Mike Armstrong is skeptical of the announcement of an Illinois company coming to the region with 50 jobs.

GIVE A GLANCE

• Center City is the center of Philadelphia’s work world [PhillyInc, Inquirer] — 216,000 private sector jobs, fewer than the 250,000 sometimes estimated, but, of course, the dominant power of the region.
• Four from Phila. area make Forbes’ richest list [Philadelphia Business Journal] — The founder of Urban Outfitters, Richard Hayne, was the only one of the four who lives in Philadelphia proper.
• Win Passes to an Advance Screening of the Social Network! [Geekadelphia] — See a screening of the Facebook movieThurs., Sept. 30 at the Ritz. Must comment TODAY.
• Chamber Names the Best of the Region’s Small Businesses [Chamber of Commerce blog] — Including Revzilla, whom we have covered.

Every Friday morning, we make sure you didn t miss anything with Friday Tech Links.

DEFINITE READS

• City, bloggers talk taxes over drinks [Inquirer] — Among the dozen or so on hand to talk about the recent blowup around business licensing was Indy Hall co-founder Geoff DiMasi.
• Data center opens at Philadelphia Navy Yard [Philadelphia Business Journal] The making of the Technology Park deal [PBJ] — The data center deal shouldn’t be confused with the energy innovation hub due for the Naval Yard too.
• How Philadelphia’s Navy Yard will become mini-city of energy innovation [Inquirer]
• Gaining on death, cooling therapy catches on slowly [Reuters] — The University of Pennsylvania is leading the trend in “therapeutic hypothermia” to battle the effects of cardiac arrest.

Below, why big companies matter in job creation, the science of football and more.

MIGHT BE OF INTEREST

• Why Big Companies Matter in Job Creation [New York Times] — It’s not small businesses that offer the real job growth, it’s startups and their directions are affected most by big corporations, they say.
• Can we move beyond tax cuts to overhaul the tax system? [Inqy columnist Mike Armstrong's PhillyInc] — On recommendations for the federal tax code.
• The Struggle for What We Already Have [The New York Times] — On the continued net neutrality battle

GIVE A GLANCE

• UPenn Named 2nd Most Dangerous Ivy League College [Philebrity]
• Social Media Savvy Cities: The 17 Most ‘Social’ Cities Ranked By NetProspex [Huffington Post] — Philly is ranked on 14th.
• Now live: NBC, NSF, and the NFL present: Science of NFL Football series [Science Cheerleader]
• Nanotechnology Institute awards funding company/university partnerships [PBJ]

Every Friday morning, we make sure you didn t miss anything with Friday Tech Links.

In March, Comcast SportsNet purchased Philadelphia sports blog The700level.com. Three months later, CSN has apparently made another move.

Last week, Jason Weitzel, the founder of seven-year-old Phillies blog Beerleaguer.com, announced that his site had been acquired for an undisclosed sum.

Like in the 700 Level deal, the property was bought out entirely though it will retain editorial control and its founder was given a position with CSN.

Weitzel, who spent eight years at the Reading Eagle newspaper, most recently at readingeagle.com, says he left to take a content manager position with Comcast Sports Group. But he says he’s not worried about stepping on the toes of Enrico Campitelli, the 29-year-old founder of the 700 Level.

“There’s really no connection, other than we’re running the same ad stacks and providing some supplementary content for the CSNPhilly mothership,” Weitzel says. “I’m more mindful of overlapping content in general since the acquisition, but Enrico’s team has a different voice than Beerleaguer and covers all the sports instead of just Phillies, so there’s really no risk of cannibalizing each other.”

The conversation between Weitzel and CSN started in September 2008, he says. They went in agreement last month and closed with a domain transfer earlier this month. What the two moves mean is the obvious, says Weitzel, 32, that CSN is “committed to local sports content.”

“Philadelphia has always had a very provincial relationship to their teams, and the 700 Level and Beerleaguer are similar in that they genuinely live and breathe it. But there’s a traffic bump in it for CSNPhilly as well. The 700 Level’s audience is particularly robust. Beerleaguer targets a smaller group with very specific tastes.

According to public traffic data estimate site Compete, Beerleaguer averages fewer than 10,000 unique visitors a month, though those metrics are often criticized for under counting web stats. The 700 Level averaged more than 30,000 uniques leading up to its purchase, according to the same site, though it has more than doubled since.

The Penn State alumnus originally from Topton, Pa. in Berks County now lives with his wife and son in West Mount Airy. He says he loves to work — even if cartooning was his first passion and Beerleaguer still remains something of an afterthought.

He took the content position first and the blog acquisition was “secondary.”

“Long story short, most of my day is dedicated to editorial and design support and development for CSNPhilly and CSN’s regional affiliates in Boston, Washington, Chicago, etcetera, with Beerleaguer handled in the cracks in between,” he says. “So Beerleaguer still feels like a hobby, even though it’s part of the package. It’s how I wanted it. I never had any aspirations to cover the beat. Overall, it’s the perfect gig.”

DEFINITE READS

• WebNewser reports that Aol has requested to see confidential documents involved in the public filing from the Comcast-NBC acquisition.
• The New York Times reports that local TV broadcasters have resigned to ‘quiet concerns’ with the NBC deal, worried about its impact but fearful of disrupting their own negotiations with the cable giant.
• The Wall Street Journal reports that Comcast rivals ‘flooded’ Monday’s call for public comment on the NBC deal.

After the jump, David L. Cohen hits the company blog, Comcast SportsNet buys another local sports blog and more.

MIGHT BE OF INTEREST

• The Comcast corporate blog features comments from Executive Vice President David L. Cohen on this week’s deadline for public comment on the NBC acquisition, in addition to writing that support had ‘poured in.’
• The Philadelphia Business Journal reports that Verizon has moved its FiOS bundling prices to be the same for month-to-month customers as contracts, which has been a criticism of the product in Comcast advertisements.

GIVE A GLANCE

• Comcast SportsNet purchased Phillies blog Beerleaguer, months after buying the700level.com, both for undisclosed sums.
• A press release announces that Comcast SportsNet grabbed exclusive coverage of the NBA draft.
• Chicago Business reports that that city’s Mayor Richard Daley and other city officials have come out in support of the NBC acquisition.
• Multichannel News reports that Comcast Internet-video publishing subsidiary ThePlatform is connecting its product with IP-connected set-tops and other tools that will allow users to move their content to big-screen TVs. H/T Philly Tech News
• The Naples News reports that a Comcast employee has filed a racial discrimination suit.

When there is just too much Comcast news to follow, the Comcast Roundup will be there every Thursday morning at 8:30 a.m. EST