In fact, this event will mark a series of industry firsts - the first live next-generation 3D broadcast of a major sporting event on TV, the first live simulcast of a next-gen 3D event online, and the industry's first live multi-camera next-gen 3D production.
We'll be providing consumers with access to a never-before seen Masters coverage of the Tournament through a dedicated 3D channel that will show about two hours of live footage per day. This channel will show customers a unique viewing experience from the traditional Masters coverage using different camera angles produced by the Masters for this rare 3D experience.
Our engineers in Comcast Labs have been testing transmission of footage from Augusta National over the past few weeks and I can tell you that it's nothing short of spectacular. You can see how 3D can dramatically enhance the viewing experience, giving a unique, immersive perspective of the golf environment. The challenges to the players represented by the varied contours of the course come alive and I particularly liked one shot where the sand flew from the bunker. Wow.
To make the experience possible, Comcast will use our fiber network to carry a 3D production feed provided to the Comcast Media Center where we will package it for distribution to our systems and the Masters website. Sony and IBM are playing critical roles in working with us and the Masters to make this 3D broadcast available to consumers.
As our industry experiments with new ways to deliver live 3D content to the home, consumer electronics manufacturers like Sony, Panasonic and Samsung are beginning to make 3D-enabled TV sets available at retail. If you're one of those early adopters who had to get your hands on an HDTV set in the late 1990s and like to try every new device first, then this is your chance to watch the next big thing. You will also be able to play the live 3D stream at www.masters.com on your PC, using a 3D media player, 3D monitor and 3D glasses. Traditional Masters Tournament coverage will continue to be available in HD on CBS and ESPN with highlights On Demand and online.
The Masters has long been a leader in the adoption of new broadcast technologies and holds the distinction of being the first golf tournament presented live in HD. Similarly, Comcast was one of the first cable companies to offer HDTV content to our customers. Since then, we've dramatically increased the amount of HD content we provide and seen the number of HDTVs skyrocket from zero to fifty percent household penetration today. Similar to HD, Comcast has consistently offered traditional ("anaglyph") 3D movie content though On Demand and has seen a strong response from its customers. This past December, Comcast was recognized in a research study as one of the top three trusted 3D brands, and the only video provider, along with Samsung and Sony.
We'll be providing additional updates and news here as the events draw closer. Until then, see you at the 19th hole.
Update: We updated this post to clarify the coverage details.
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Ralph Roberts, Comcast’s founder, celebrated his 90th birthday with a crowd of fellow Comcasters today. The cake was prepared by everyone’s favorite Cake Boss, Buddy Valastro, and music was provided by a group of people as distinctly Philadelphian as Ralph himself, the Mummers.
Happy birthday, Ralph!
If you want to find out more about Ralph, and his thoughts on business, technology, and Comcast, check out our three part interview with him (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3).
]]>The Academy Awards ceremony is this weekend, so what better time to take to the streets and ask the people of Philadelphia some Oscars trivia? Watch the video to find out how much an Oscar weighs, who won the most Oscars, and how many people know who is hosting the award ceremony.
Remember, you can catch some of the nominated films On Demand, so you’ll be prepared for the award show.
Thanks to everyone who stopped to talk with me.
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Before you watch the Oscars this weekend why not catch the nominated movies that you missed in the theater in the comfort of your own home via On Demand. We have a bunch of the nominees available for viewing, including:
That’s just a small sampling of what you’ll find in the “Oscar Films & More” collection on your On Demand menu.
If you’re a frequent movie goer chances are you’ve already seen many of the nominated films, though repeated viewings are always fun, but have you seen the nominated live and animated shorts? I bet you haven’t! Starting today (March 3rd) you can check watch Door, Instead of Abracadabra, Kavi, Miracle Fish, A Matter of Loaf and Death, French Roast, The Lady and the Reaper, Sleeping Beauty and the rest of the shorts On Demand (they’ll be in the “Oscar Films & More” as well).
You’ll also find some films in the Oscar Films & More folder by a man that might surprise you: Roger Corman. Corman is known as the “King of the B’s,” because he has produced something like 300 movies (and directed over 50). The Academy, in recognition of both his work and mentoring of other directors, awarded Corman the Lifetime Achievement Academy Award this year. Check out some of his opus On Demand including The Raven with Jack Nicholson, St. Valentine’s with Jason Robards and The Wild Angels with both Nancy Sinatra and Peter Fonda.
Be sure to check out Fancast Xfinity TV’s special Oscar section to watch trailers and find out more about current and past nominees.
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The Xfinity launch this week is exciting from a product perspective because
the timing with the Winter Olympic games gives us the opportunity to
highlight just how much our products have changed. One of the most important
aspects of Xfinity is the convergence of our services across platforms.
(That¹s how we got the “X” in Xfinity.)
For example, you can watch live Olympic event video streaming and video highlights at www.comcast.net, where we have set up an interactive multimedia report with medal counts, slideshows, event previews, feature stories and more.
You can also plan your Olympic event schedule online, via our SmartZone®
Communications Center, using a special
calendar function that will tell you not only when an event airs, but the
network (NBC or Bravo) and the exact channel number for your channel lineup
(NBCHD 232 in my neighborhood).
Finally, On Demand coverage offers recaps from past Winter Olympics, information on this year’s Olympics, profiles and interviews of the athletes and next day highlights during the Vancouver Olympics. Most content is available in high-definition and includes a glimpse of Team USA and “next day” highlights.
So, enjoy the Opening Ceremonies tonight and all the great action over the next two weeks. Go USA!
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Valentine’s Day. You’re thinking love and romance, right? Well to some, yes that’s what February 14 is all about, but my friends and I loved to hate Valentine’s Day because we were the singletons who didn’t catch the Valentine’s bug. To see how others felt about Valentine’s Day, we recently conducted a survey on Comcast.net, which found that most people also “hate” Valentine’s Day. When consumers were asked whether or not Valentine’s Day is a “hate night” or “date night” for them the results showed that:
However you think of St. Valentine’s Day, February 14 is inevitable - whether you celebrate the day with a loved one or spend the day hating it with friends. To commemorate this Valentine’s Day we’ve come up with two movie collections that you’ll love, or love to hate. Want a great romance film to get you and your Valentine in the spirit? We’ve got a movie collection for you; Date Night movies include snuggle worthy classics and modern day romances such as:
And more!
If you and your friends are not interested in the romantic movies, we’ve come up with a movie collection called Lovers and Liars with great movies about love gone wrong such as:
So be it “Date Night” or “Hate Night,” you can celebrate V-Day any way you like On Demand.
]]>There were many issues addressed at the hearings, so I’d like to take a moment to cover some of the most discussed topics.
Jobs: A number of Representatives and Senators asked how the proposed joint venture would impact jobs as our nation continues to suffer high unemployment. As Brian and Jeff responded, there is very little overlap between our two companies. The goal of bringing the companies together is not to cut costs by eliminating jobs, but to grow the company by investing, innovating, and competing. And, not incidentally, the new NBCU will be a 100 percent American-owned company.
Competition: There was a lot of discussion of a variety of competition-related issues, as well as how this transaction will affect consumers. Brian and Jeff reminded the Congressional committees that this is primarily a vertical combination, bringing together NBCU’s content with Comcast’s multiple distribution platforms. Generally speaking, there is less antitrust concern with a vertical transaction. And that’s the case here.
The new company won’t have enough economic power at either end of the distribution chain to affect competition, meaning we won’t have the incentive or the capacity to engage in exclusionary or discriminatory conduct. Adam Thierer of the Progress and Freedom Foundation also did a very nice job of rebutting the “creative” antitrust theories espoused by Mark Cooper of the Consumer Federation of America who, recognizing the lack of serious antitrust risks of our joint venture when viewed from a vertical perspective, tried to argue that it really was a horizontal combination. Rep. Stearns, the Ranking Member of the House Telecommunications Subcommittee, also sharply cross examined Dr. Cooper.
In addition to traditional antitrust and fair competition principles, a combination like this one is also governed by the FCC’s program access and program carriage rules. Over the last week (and at the hearings) some people asked whether we’re being consistent in saying the program access rules will help ensure competition, while at the same time we have filed a court appeal of certain portions of those rules. The short answer is that there is no inconsistency in our position. We have argued and believe that today’s marketplace is sufficiently competitive to do away with those rules, but we have strong reasons to compete fairly whether the rules are in effect or not. We don’t intend to behave any differently than we have under the rules and we’re willing to accept a condition that we abide by those rules, even if the court declares them invalid.
Broadcast Television: There was a great deal of discussion about the future of the broadcast industry, which faces serious challenges in terms of changing audiences and changing technologies. While we don’t have all of the answers for how we can help solve the broadcast industry’s problems, Brian did reiterate our commitment to free, over-the-air broadcast television. He said that Comcast wants to work with the local broadcast affiliates to help revitalize the broadcast business. And he reinforced our commitment to invest in critical broadcast programming – news, local programming, etc. — and promised that Comcast would be a reliable steward of NBC News, which — we can all agree – is a national treasure. Jeff noted that, in his opinion, Comcast’s commitments to broadcast television and to investing in NBC News were under-appreciated and represented a strong public interest benefit of the transaction.
Online Video: A number of Representatives and Senators asked how this deal would impact the future of video over the Internet, and some expressed concerns that Comcast and NBCU would try to limit its availability. As Brian has said for several years, video over the Internet is our friend, not our foe, and he explained how we intend to bring more video to the Internet, not less. Brian and Jeff gave some context for the wide-open, highly competitive online video marketplace where Google is by far the leader, with nearly 55 percent of all online viewing – well ahead of Hulu which is in the low single-digits and Comcast’s Fancast which has less than one percent. Overall, Brian and Jeff made the point that it’s our joint vision to help lead the experimentation and innovation that is taking place in the nascent and fast-moving video over the Internet marketplace.
Overall, we thought the hearings went very well. They gave us another opportunity to make our case that this transaction is pro-consumer, pro-competitive, and strongly in the public interest. We also noted the bipartisan calls for an expeditious review by the Justice Department and the FCC. And we were gratified that the committee members not only recognized the extensive voluntary commitments that we have already made, but also how this combination will benefit consumers and drive innovation in the competitive marketplace.
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Today on Comcast’s earnings call Brian Roberts and Steve Burke talked about XFINITY, the new brand for our technology platform and products. Simply put, XFINITY is about offering our customers more — more HD, more speed, more choice and more control over their services. XFINITY is the culmination of years of work to transition Comcast’s network and products to a platform that will now offer 100+ HD channels, 50 to 70 foreign-language channels, approaching 20,000+ VOD choices, incredibly fast Internet speeds (50 Mbps growing to 100+ Mbps) and thousands of TV shows and movies online for our customers to watch whenever and wherever they want.
XFINITY represents the future of our company and it’s a promise to customers that we’ll keep innovating. When we launch XFINITY in a market, we’ll rebrand our products: XFINITY TV, XFINITY Voice and XFINITY Internet (our company, of course, remains Comcast). This transition is already well underway across the country. Next week, XFINITY will roll out in 11 markets including: Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington D.C., Chicago, Portland, Seattle, Hartford, Augusta, Chattanooga, parts of the Bay Area and San Francisco, with more markets to come later this year.
I’ve been in the industry for 11 years and I’ve never seen change move as rapidly as it does today. It’s hard to believe that we first launched VOD in 2003 and since then customers have viewed more than 14 billion movies, TV shows, music videos, etc. In 2004, the fastest Internet speeds were 6 Mbps. Now we’re offering 50 Mbps in XFINITY markets, and those speeds will keep increasing to 100+ Mbps and even faster in the future.
Only a few years ago, innovation in our industry meant giving customers not one, but six HBO channels. Now, if you get HBO from Comcast, you also get hundreds of top HBO shows and movies on demand plus you can watch even more online. Today you can watch 19,000+ movies and TV shows from networks like HBO, CBS, Starz, Hallmark, TBS, TNT Discovery online.
We are working toward a future that brings exponentially more content choices to consumers across platforms with an initiative that we call Project Infinity. We first introduced Project Infinity at CES in 2008 and thousands of people have been working hard at Comcast to make it a reality.
Technology continues to change the way people experience entertainment. We’re working hard to continuously improve that experience. We’re moving from thousands of entertainment choices to tens of thousands, making our high-speed Internet service even faster while at the same time providing fast 4G wireless data services. We’re also giving consumers more control over their content and the ability to watch their favorite shows online. In addition, we’re developing new cross-platform and mobile features like: remote DVR, Universal Caller ID, an interactive home telephone, apps for iPhones and the ability to use a remote control to order products and services while watching TV. And we’re backing it all up with our Customer Guarantee.
As entertainment continues to shift from the living room to “anytime, anywhere,” we’ll continue to dramatically evolve all of our products under the XFINITY brand. While I can’t predict the future, I do know one thing for sure: this is the just the beginning.
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I have always considered Black History Month a curious observance. My elementary school lined the halls with posters of Frederick Douglass, Benjamin Banneker, Dr. Charles Drew, Harriet Tubman and many other black history icons. We also recited Martin Luther King Jr’s., I Have a Dream speech. For one month (shortest month of the year) we were free to acknowledge the full scope and breath of the role black folks played in building this country. With the changing of the calendar, as February gave way to March, the posters came down and we returned to our history books with the obligatory chapters on slavery. Even then I would wonder, sometime aloud, why couldn’t we study these remarkable people all year? Why did we only get a month? Needless to say the responses were seldom, if ever, satisfying.
Fortunately I made it out of elementary school with a relatively healthy sense of self that over the years has served me well. And thanks to my role here at Comcast I now have the opportunity to extend the availability of great African American content beyond the days of February. Black Cinema on Demand will showcase the best in African American movies and documentaries and will be available long after Black History Month ends. Great stories featuring African American actors and film makers will be available at the touch of a button.
Access to content that validates ones cultural sensibilities should not be limited to one month but rather available at anytime to all those who want to see it. Now that’s a satisfying answer.
To get to Black Cinema On Demand select “Movies” > “Movie Collections” > “Black Cinema” on your On Demand screen.
]]>Since we made our official announcement to form the joint venture on December 3rd, we have explained that the transaction is pro-consumer, pro-competition, and strongly in the public interest. Our filing today comprehensively reviews the transaction’s specific public interest benefits and how they meet the FCC’s cornerstone interests of diversity, localism, competition, and innovation. By bringing together NBC’s high-quality content with the technology and innovation of Comcast’s technology platform, the new venture will increase the amount, quality, variety, and availability of content more than either company could on its own, which will promote diversity. The new venture will also provide more and better local programming, including local news and information programming, advancing localism. The transaction will spur other content producers and distributors to improve their own services, enhancing competition. Our experimentation with new business models and distribution platforms to better serve consumers will promote innovation.
In our December announcement, we made an unprecedented number of public interest commitments designed to enhance and ensure the strong public interest benefits of the transaction. Our Public Interest Statement expands on these commitments and offers additional details, including the following:
The Public Interest Statement details the intensely competitive environment in which NBCU and Comcast operate. In the content market, Comcast today has just a 3% share, and NBCU only 9%, so the new NBCU accounts for only about 12% of overall national cable network advertising and affiliate revenues. Today, NBC is the 4th largest owner of national cable networks, and even after the transaction, the new NBCU will still rank as 4th largest owner of national cable networks, behind Disney/ABC, Time Warner, and Viacom. After the transaction closes, 6 of every 7 channels carried by Comcast Cable will be unaffiliated with Comcast or the new NBCU.
The Public Interest Statement demonstrates that the new combination will not result in the violation of any provisions of the Communications Act, or other applicable statutes or the Commission’s rules, and reviews the already comprehensive regulatory structures in place to assuage any concerns specific to competition in the industry, including program access, program carriage, and retransmission consent rules. And of course, there’s an established body of antitrust law that governs the conduct of all businesses.
With this filing, we initiate what we hope will be a constructive dialogue with the FCC and interested stakeholders, including the general public. Consistent with Commission rules and past practice, this conversation should be limited to legitimate merger-specific issues. As the Commission has said in the past, a transaction review process is not the appropriate forum to air general industry issues or to ventilate imagined or contrived grievances. We are looking forward to a thorough — and expeditious — regulatory review of this transaction, and to working with the Commission, the DOJ, Congress, and other interested parties for a successful completion of this important venture.
]]>Brian reiterated how excited he is by the proposed NBCU joint venture. “This is fundamentally a bet on America,” he said, anticipating that the economy is recovering, Internet demand will grow, and that “television will remain an important part of our lives.” He also stressed that this deal is not about cutting jobs, but about keeping up with change and making NBCU “more deeply involved” with the digital future.
Despite some of NBC’s challenges, “we think there is a vibrant role for local and national broadcast TV,” he said. He also said “there’s going to be a thorough regulatory review,” but he said he hopes it will be completed on a timely basis.
Alan Murray asked Brian about his frequent comment that “the Internet is friend, not foe.” Brian noted that the cable industry “made a tough decision to invest in fiber optics before anyone else (in the mid-Nineties)” which powered cable’s push to be the first to bring high-speed Internet to American homes. He spoke about the challenges and opportunities the Internet presents. “Broadband is still the best-growing part of our company. We will invest in broadband. We want to be faster than (the competition).”
Alan Murray asked Brian about the cable industry’s reputation for innovation (contrasting it with Apple’s on the day that Apple is releasing its new tablet device), Brian mentioned some of Comcast’s innovations in areas like high-speed Internet, video on demand, Comcast Digital Voice. He also highlighted the vision of Comcast’s Project Infinity - “unlimited choice, unlimited devices… At the end of it all, we’re enabling as much change as any company.”
Asked about the net neutrality debate, Brian reaffirmed Comcast’s commitment to an open Internet. Referring to Web-based innovations, he said “none of us wants to get in the way of that innovation, or can or will.” He commended FCC Chairman Genachowski’s “open and transparent process” to decide whether new rules are needed.
The conference is an annual event of the Advisory Committee of the Congressional Internet Caucus and organized by the Internet Education Foundation. This year’s conference also highlights cybersecurity, copyright in an Internet age, global free expression, and smart grid, among other hot topics. We’ll add a link to the streaming version of this keynote interview when it is posted.
Update 1/29/10: The video of the session is now available on C-SPAN.
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Band of Brothers, HBO’s World War II miniseries, was a hit with critic and audiences alike. It followed E Company from basic training, to D Day, and finally to the end of the war.
The creative team behind Band of Brothers, Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg and Gary Goetzman, have once again teamed up to tell a story from the other side of WWII’s theater of war: The Pacific.
The Pacific tracks the real-life journeys of three U.S. Marines as they fight for their country, and themselves, in the Pacific theater during World War II. The miniseries premieres on HBO March 14,2010 but if you’re a Comcast Digital Cable customer you have access to some first look features about The Pacific starting today.
The features available On Demand include:
And that’s just scratching the surface.
Now, I know a lot of you will want to watch Band of Brothers again before The Pacific premieres. That’s why each week an episode of Band of Brothers will be available for viewing On Demand, leading up to the Pacific’s premiere.
You’ll find all this content under the “Top Picks” folder on your On Demand menu.
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I don’t think it will shock many to hear that I am a self-confessed Star Trek fan (I respond to either Trekker or Trekkie). I haven’t met a variant of Star Trek that I didn’t like (though I will admit that Voyager didn’t really do too much for me). This is why I am so excited that starting today, and lasting until January 13th, all 11 Star Trek movies are available On Demand in HD, the first time all the movies have been gathered in HD in one place.
Not only are all the Star Trek movies available On Demand (as well as “Galaxy Quest,” a bonus sci-fi treat) but all the episodes of the Original Series are available on Fancast.com.
I can’t think of a better holiday gift for Star Trek fans. I know I plan to send my holiday weekend working my way through all the Star Trek movies in order.
I’ve embedded by favorite episode of the Original Series after the jump. Click ‘Read more’ to find out which episode I love, and be sure to name your favorite episode in the comments!
]]>I was going to embed Spock’s Brain, which is generally accepted as the worst episode of Star Trek, but I couldn’t do it. City on the Edge of Forever is just too good not to embed.
What’s your fav?
]]>Over the past decade, Comcast has transformed itself from a traditional cable company to one of the nation’s leading entertainment, communications and information providers, focused on delivering consumers the entertainment and information they want, when and where they want it. Today’s announcement opens up new opportunities to advance that goal.
First, a few facts about the deal. Comcast will hold a 51 percent stake in the new company and will control and manage its operations, with GE (the current majority owner of NBCU) owning the remaining 49 percent. NBC Universal and Comcast networks will retain their popular consumer brand names. I am pleased to be partnering with Jeff Immelt who is one of the most respected business leaders in America and to have GE’s continued involvement. You can find the press release here.
It’s easy to see why this combination is a great strategic fit when you think about the new opportunities it creates to provide “anytime, anywhere” content to consumers. NBCU’s assets include two national broadcast networks (NBC and Telemundo), Emmy Award-winning shows like The Office and 30 Rock, one of the best sports programming lineups in America, including the Olympics and NFL football, a Hollywood studio with one of the most celebrated content libraries with 4000+ titles and a portfolio of best in class cable networks. It is also a leader in serving the growing Hispanic audience. Bringing these assets together with great Comcast content like E!, the Golf Channel, Versus and our 10 regional sports networks, and our existing commitment to serve diverse audiences, will create a base from which all of these content assets will grow in quality. The new venture will facilitate the launch of new content as well as innovative distribution opportunities through multiple platforms in and out of the home.
Importantly, the new company will be financially strong with significant cash flow and a conservative capital structure that will only help fuel its ability to innovate and grow. In today’s increasingly competitive and rapidly evolving digital marketplace, where consumers demand more interactive services and more content choices when and where they want them, having a sound and flexible business structure will be critical to our success.
Finally, let me just spend a moment on the people that will be involved in this new enterprise. Comcast, as you know, has a long and successful track record of integrating new businesses, and the team we have in place here to do that is second to none. Our team will be led by Steve Burke, who oversaw Comcast’s very successful integration of AT&T Broadband – a much larger company – into Comcast several years ago. Jeff Zucker will be the CEO of the new venture and will report to Steve Burke. We are delighted to have Jeff and his talented team join our company.
While the new venture will operate at arm’s-length from Comcast’s cable operations, the opportunities for collaboration and innovation will generate consumer benefits that we are eager to explore.
The transaction is subject to certain federal government approvals and will begin the process of government review in the next 30 days. Our hope is to move expeditiously to take advantage of the important opportunities that this new combination will provide. We will provide periodic updates here on Comcast Voices, and as always we welcome your comments.
Editor's Note: Comcast has made an unprecedented number of proactive commitments to benefit consumers and further the public interest as part of this proposed transaction. Click here to read more.
Click here to read the Spanish translation of this post.
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This year’s Comcast Holiday Spectacular debuted last week in the lobby of Philadelphia’s Comcast Center to an enthusiastic crowd… in 3-D.
Presented on The Comcast Experience, the world’s largest 4 mm, LED display in vivid 3-D, the show is fast becoming a holiday tradition here in Philadelphia. This year, the 19 minute show has been recreated in 3-D, and free 3-D glasses are passed out so you won’t miss any of the fun.
If you’re in the Philadelphia area this holiday season, stop by the Comcast Center (at 1701 John F. Kennedy Blvd., Philadelphia, PA, 19103.) and see the show yourself. It runs on the hour every day from 10am to 8pm (with the exception of 5 pm on weekdays) until January 1, 2010.
In addition to being fun, we’re also helping people with the Comcast Holiday Spectacular. We’ve partnered with the United Way of Southeastern PA to help fight hunger during this holiday season. People can donate $5 to the United Way SEPA by simply texting ‘PHILLY’ to 864833 on their cell phone. This information is displayed a couple times during the show itself, but you can feel free to text that number from anywhere and donate $5 yourself.
Read on to see a short video about The Comcast Experience video wall that includes brief interviews with with David Cohen, our Executive Vice President, and David Niles who wrote and directed The Comcast Holiday Spectacular and get a look at what the show looks like.
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