Comcast Corp. is eyeing major expansion and rebranding in 2017. The company, which launched a TV streaming service in 2015, is reportedly looking to extend video streaming options for its broadband subscribers who are not keen on shelling out too much money.
The news comes courtesy of reliable sources of Reuters, who have let on that the upcoming service from Comcast is dubbed Xfinity Instant TV.
Xfinity Instant TV will reportedly target people who do not wish to subscribe to Comcast's traditional cable TV plans.
Xfinity Instant TV: What Will It Offer?
According to reports, this service will cost between $15 and $40 a month. The service will include key broadcast networks as well as sports channels such as ESPN, and Spanish channels like Univision and Telemundo.
Xfinity Instant TV: Availability
Xfinity Instant TV is anticipated to launch in Q3 2017. The service will likely be made available to roughly 50 million homes that fall under Comcast's purview. These include cities like Chicago, Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia.
Why Launch Xfinity Instant TV?
Comcast's main aim for Xfinity Instant TV is to broaden its audience as the viewing habits of people evolve. With this service, Comcast will reportedly be able to cater to homes using high-speed internet. These subscribers are either not interested in big cable packages, or cannot afford the Comcast TV streaming plans.
Xfinity Instant TV will be launched with the expectation that subscribers will gravitate toward, and upgrade to, Comcast's X1 platform over time. Xfinity Instant TV will likely rival services such as DirecTV Now, Sling TV, and PlayStation Vue.
Comcast has a trial run underway for a service dubbed Stream in select cities in five states — Michigan, Indiana, New Hampshire, Illinois, and Massachusetts. This video streaming service is priced at $15 per month in these states. According to sources, the impending Xfinity Instant TV is said to be a revamped variant of Stream.
Comcast Violating Net Neutrality Rules?
Considering Xfinity Instant TV will be a lot like Stream, it could give Comcast subscribers a huge perk by not counting toward their data caps. This would be a huge advantage for Comcast as its rivals' services count data caps.
In theory, if this occurs, then it would be a violation of net neutrality rules as a company is favoring a streaming service — in this case its own — over others. However, Comcast says that the interpretation of the situation is incorrect and its services do not break any net neutrality laws.
The company states that the Stream TV service is not an internet one in the first place. The TV streaming service, in a bid to provide content on to PCs, tablets, and phones, has to pass via a broadband modem.
"Stream TV is a cable streaming service delivered over Comcast's cable system, not over the Internet. Therefore, Stream TV data usage will not be counted towards your XFINITY Internet monthly data usage," asserts Comcast on its support page.
Comcast has already come under the FCC radar for allegedly violating open internet rules. At the time, Comcast explained that its Stream TV was not a "zero-rated" service.
