The nation's number one cable company Comcast will unveil a significant new initiative today when CEO Brian Roberts delivers a keynote speech at CES (webcast will be here): a plan to deliver a significantly increased amount of TV and Internet-based video. The goal is to give consumers virtually unlimited access to content through a combination of both traditional TV-based combined with Internet-based on-demand access through Comcast's Fancast web site.
Over the past several months, Comcast has quietly been expanding the on-demand TV and film content made available on Fancast, to the point where more than 3,000 hours of full TV episodes from most of the top networks are available at no charge. Fancast also offers a number of full-length films, mostly, it seems, from Hulu, the joint venture between News Corp. and NBC.
Comcast has struggled with Hollywood to gain the TV on-demand rights to recently released films, although the operator contends that its current selection of 300 films will radically expand to 6,000 under a plan called "Project Infinity." In combination with Comcast's plan to offer very fast Internet service, called wideband, another initiative to get some PR juice at Roberts' CES keynote today, the operator is clearly trying to stave off the competitive threat posed by satellite and web-based rivals.
Fancast will also feature some add-on bells and whistles, such as the ability to program DVRs remotely and expanded entertainment databases, a la IMDB, that will no doubt enhance traffic and raise the company's visibility as a key player in the emerging world of Internet-based video. Comcast's more assertive embrace of online video, not to mention its push on wideband Internet access, comes at a low point for the operator and is a refreshing turn-around. Last month Comcast stunned investors by lowering guidance for the year, saying that the economy and competitive forces had taken a toll on its ability to maintain predicted growth.
Cynthia Brumfield at 7:50 AM|Comments(0)
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