Comcast has this week unveiled a new Xfinity TV Partner app that will be arriving on Roku streaming hardware as well as Samsung’s 2016 line of smart TVs and will remove the need for users to have a set-top boxes to view cable content.
The Xfinity TV Partner app will provide access to the Xfinity guide along with live and on-demand content, plus a cloud-based DVR and Comcast explains that the application is not an over-the-top streaming service, but rather a way for its customers to access programming without the need for a traditional set-top box as previously required.
Comcast explains in todays press release :
Today, we are launching the Xfinity TV Partner Program. Through this new program, we will expand the range of retail devices our customers can use to access Xfinity TV cable service without the need to lease a set-top box. By leveraging the open HTML5 standard that has been widely adopted across the industry, we are providing a common framework to make it easy for TV and other device manufacturers to bring our Xfinity TV Partner App to customers on their devices.
Comcast SVP Mark Hess explains :
In light of the success of the apps-based model in the marketplace, the far-reaching government technical mandate being currently proposed by the FCC is unnecessary. The FCC’s proposed set-top box mandate threatens to undermine this highly-dynamic marketplace, create substantial costs and consumer harms, and will take years to develop — only to be likely outdated by the time it reaches the marketplace — all in an effort to achieve what apps are already delivering for consumers.
The FCC responded :
While we do not know all of the details of this announcement, it appears to offer only a proprietary, Comcast-controlled user interface and seems to allow only Comcast content on different devices, rather than allowing those devices to integrate or search across Comcast content as well as other content consumers subscribe to.
For more information on the new Xfinity TV Partner app jump over to the Comcast website for details following the link below.
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