Comcast XFINITY TV → [X1] Xfinity X1 now available to New Customers

Seems like a nice UI improvement

There is a new option in Comcast Labs that changes the ondemand episode guide for a series.

If you turn on the beta, each episode now shows a scene from the episode and you can sort the list to show all ondemand episodes or only episodes that are included in your package.

Comcast has now made its X1 platform available to businesses nationwide:

Comcast Makes Emmy Award-Winning X1 Platform Available to Businesses Nationwide
Comcast Business Now Offers New Video Service to Bars, Restaurants, Hotels, Gyms and More
Comcast press release, Business Wire - March 13, 2019
»www.businesswire.com/new ··· tionwide

quote:

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Comcast Business today announced the company’s award-winning X1 video platform is now available to the millions of bars, restaurants, hotels, gyms and other businesses across Comcast’s footprint. X1 for Business includes easier search and navigation, voice control and a picture-in-picture, sports content companion called the X1 Sports App that includes team and players profiles, statistics and real-time, game-specific data.

The launch of X1 for Business arrives just in time for the NCAA Basketball Tournament, one of the most profitable times of the year for sports bars and restaurants when fans want to watch multiple games at once and be among friends and co-workers. According to the American Gaming Association, 70 million college basketball brackets are filled out annually and last year, first-round coverage averaged 8.6 million television viewers, up from 8.2 million in 2017.

“Businesses across the country can now offer their customers the same award-winning video experience that millions of people experience everyday in their living room,” said Christian Nascimento, Vice President Product and Premise Services, Comcast Business. “X1 for Business is a game-changer – whether it’s a bar or restaurant integrating sports stats into the viewing experience, a hotel or gym giving customers an easier way to find what they want to watch or a small business helping their guests pass the time in the lobby or waiting room.”

Today, about two-thirds of Comcast’s residential customers have X1. X1 for Business will offer businesses and their customers:

• Voice Control: Businesses can use the X1 Voice Remote to quickly search for networks, shows and movies, change the channel, get recommendations, navigate content and more. There are more than 24 million residential voice remotes deployed and there were 8 billion voice searches last year alone.

• On-Screen Guide: The easy to use on-screen guide and search functionality allows employees to focus on serving customers, and not searching for programming. A view of the last nine channels makes accessing popular and most-watched content easier than ever.

• Sports Content: Provide customers with up to the minutes sports updates. The X1 Sports app brings real-time scores and statistics to sports like baseball, football, basketball and NASCAR, alongside thein-game action

• Accessibility: The X1 talking guide is the industry’s first and only voice-enabled television user interface that reads aloud selections like program titles, network and time slots, serving as a solution for TV fans who have a visual disability.

• Language of Choice: Bicultural customers can quickly change the guide and channel listings from English to Spanish and find Spanish-language and SAP-enabled programming through advanced filtering directly within the experience.
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X1 for Business is now available to businesses across Comcast’s footprint. Customers from across industries will begin upgrading their service to enhance experiences such as: in-room, voice-controlled TV watching in hotels; real-time sports stats and content at workout stations in gyms; and intuitive, easy-to-navigate channel options while at the office.
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To learn more about X1 for Business and Comcast Business’s Business TV solutions, please visit: »business.comcast.com/learn/tv

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AMC would rather you pay for their premium service with no commercials.

In 2018 anything’s possible. I’m still pissed off they changed the UI design of the playback controls back in 2016.

Usually when those features are promoted they find their way into one of the standard menus, but it doesn't mean it will be enabled by default.

Also, seriously, you think Comcast (a major content owner) would make a commercial skipping setting standard and not have a way to turn it off? They'd love for you watch more commercials. So I'm sure it will always be optional.

Ok but that still has a risk of becoming a permanent feature and not allow us to turn it off, right?

Yes in the Comcast Labs menu

It's called "Smart Resume for Recordings"

Remind me, is there a way to turn this off?

Just wanted to give a heads up that as of last night I noticed that new "resume" feature that lets you automatically fast forward and stop after the commercial break for DVR recordings now also works for day time shows as well. When this feature was first released a few months ago it only worked on prime time shows or sports at night.

Now I am not sure if it works on all shows yet but I saw it worked for both "The Young and the restless" and Days of our lives"

I am still hoping this will start working with The CW and other networks too like AMC and so on in the near future.

Doh, somehow I missed that entirely!

Yeah, I had created a separate thread about that a few weeks ago: »[X1] Amazon Prime Video has now launched on the X1 Plaform

Haven't seen this mentioned.

»www.soundandvision.com/c ··· y-x1-box

We'll soon be getting Amazon Prime Video native to X1 boxes. Which is cool. That's the other service I use regularly in addition to Netflix.

Zone-tv's Pro Guitar Lessons TV and Stephen’s Drum Shed are now also available on the X1 platform at $4.99 a month:

Zone·tv™ SVODs Pro Guitar Lessons TV and Stephen’s Drum Shed Now Available on Xfinity X1
Xfinity X1 Customers Can Channel Their Inner Rock Star and Learn from the Best with Music Lessons from the Pros
Zone·tv press release, Business Wire - June 18, 2018
»www.businesswire.com/new ··· 2%80%99s

quote:

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Zone·tv™ today announced that Pro Guitar Lessons TV and Stephen’s Drum Shed, two online subscription video on demand services (SVODs) featuring cost-effective lessons from top professional guitar and drum instructors, are now available on Comcast’s X1 platform. X1 customers can find the services by saying “Pro Guitar Lessons TV” and “Stephen’s Drum Shed” into their X1 voice remote or by finding them within the networks section of Xfinity On Demand. Each of the services cost $4.99 a month and can be added to a customer’s subscription directly from X1.

“The great Xfinity X1 line-up of SVODs from zone·tv continues to grow with these two music instructional channels,” said Jeff Weber, CEO, zone·tv. “Xfinity X1 customers who are music lovers can follow music lessons from the pros to learn or sharpen their skills, without ever having to leave the comforts of home or pay for costly in person music lessons.”

Pro Guitar Lessons TV features some of the top instructors as seen in Guitar World, Guitar Player and Bass Player magazines. Viewers of all ages can learn chords, scales, songs, as well as how to get gigs, change strings and more, right in front of the TV. ...

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Comcast has launched a new program, "X1 for Hospitality," to bring the "X1 experience" to hotel guests:

Comcast Business Launches X1 For Hospitality
Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia at Comcast Center Will Feature Award-Winning X1 Video Experience In All Guest Rooms
Comcast press release, Business Wire - June 18, 2018
»www.businesswire.com/new ··· pitality

quote:

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Comcast Business today announced the launch of X1 for Hospitality »business.comcast.com/ent ··· pitality , a program that brings the unique features and personalization of the award-winning, video platform to hotel guests. Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia at Comcast Center, located in the heart of Center City, Philadelphia, will include X1 in each of its 219 guest rooms when it opens this winter.

“Four Seasons guests seek exceptional quality at every turn, and technology and entertainment are an important part of their experience with us,” said Ben Shank, general manager of Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia at Comcast Center. “Today’s luxury travelers want customized, personal experiences with fantastic and intuitive amenities. X1 is simple and user-friendly allowing guests to navigate and discover the programs they want to watch. With the voice remote, finding a channel, show or movie is now as easy as the click of a button and a simple voice command. We believe X1 will help elevate our guests’ in-room experience and create a truly world-class visit.”
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"Comcast has the potential to disrupt the $3 billion United States business TV market with X1 for Hospitality," said Greg Ireland, multiscreen video analyst at IDC. "Products and solutions that have generated excellent results on the residential side can help businesses, particularly in the hospitality industry, gain an edge in attracting new and returning consumers."

The X1 product that will be featured at the Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia at Comcast Center will include:

• Loads of Content: Approximately 300 channel options and a free library of over 50,000 TV shows and movies On Demand.

• Voice Control: Guests can use the X1 Voice Remote to search for networks, shows and movies, set DVR recordings, change the channel, get recommendations, navigate On Demand content and more. Residential X1 customers used the voice remote more than 1.5 billion times in the first three months of 2018 alone.

• Recordings: A two-tuner DVR, allowing guests to record their favorite programming while watching something else or save to be viewed at their convenience when they return to their rooms.

• Multicultural: X1 is available with Spanish screens and menus and the X1 Voice Remote understands Spanish commands. The platform also includes curated content collections like Black Film & TV, International, and LGBTQ.

• Accessibility: Guests can say “accessibility” into the X1 Voice Remote or tap the “B” key to get to a menu with all of X1’s accessibility options. Guests can also quickly jump into specific features by saying “captions,” “description,” “SAP,” “voice guidance” or “shows with description” to find any programs that are described.

• Branded Channels: Hotels are able to include important promotional and informational content designed to inform and entice guests.

• Award-Winning: Comcast won an Emmy Award for Technology and Engineering – the award specifically honors the work of the technology teams that develop the Xfinity X1 Voice Remote and the innovative software platform that powers it. And the company won the prestigious Red Dot Design Award, which each year recognizes products from around the world that exemplify “outstanding design.”

“X1 has changed the game for millions of people when it comes to watching television and now hotels can bring that same experience to their guests,” said Denice Hasty, Chief Marketing Officer, Comcast Business. “Few brands know more about the importance of experience than the Four Seasons and we look forward to making their Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia at Comcast Center a premier destination with the very best technology and amenities, all tuned to the unique needs of their guests.” ...

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Also on MCN: »www.multichannel.com/new ··· y-market

I just came across this FAQ in Netflix's KB about which X1 boxes support various features for Netflix:
»help.netflix.com/en/node/51791

Equestrian-lifestyle network RIDE TV will be available this summer via subscription-based XoD on the X1 platform for $4.99 per month:

Ride TV Gets SVOD Launch on Xfinity X1
Equestrian service to cost $4.99 monthly
Multichannel News - May 1, 2018
»www.multichannel.com/new ··· inity-x1

quote:

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Equestrian-lifestyle network Ride TV will launch as a subscription video-on-demand channel on Comcast's Xfinity X1 platform this summer, the channel said. It will be available for $4.99 per month, the Fort Worth, Texas-based channel said in a release.

Network CEO Michael Fletcher said in the release: “I wish to personally thank the leadership of Comcast for launching our service. By supporting independent networks like Ride TV and making them available via the Xfinity X1, it is evident Comcast is committed to giving customers more choice when it comes to enjoying the programming that’s most important to them." ...

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The RIDE TV press release: »www.prnewswire.com/news- ··· 711.html

When this happened to me, I found a suggestion on the web to set the skip back to five minutes, and then set it to 30 seconds. It worked!

EXIT EXIT EXIT 0500
then
EXIT EXIT EXIT 0030

I just found that the 30 second skip hidden feature you can enable for the page up/down buttons seems to have been disabled. Trying to re-enable it with the known code sequence of EXIT EXIT EXIT 0 0 3 0 does nothing.

I haven't checked my bedroom box, but this just happened on my XG1v4 in the living room. It was working as a 30 second skip up until the last day or so.

Anyone else seen this?

EDIT: Apparently the 30 second skip is known to reset itself on occasion after an update, and the feature won't work again until a hard power down. I pulled the plug on the box and then it was back to 30 second skip mode when it booted back up.

Comcast said it has now integrated the Tile device location system with its Xfinity Home, X1 platform and X1 voice remote:

Comcast and Tile Partner on First-of-Its-Kind Video and Voice Control Integration
Xfinity Customers Can Now Locate Tile Devices Anywhere with Xfinity X1 Voice Remote and See Results on the Television
Comcast press release, Business Wire - April 26, 2018
»www.businesswire.com/new ··· -Control

quote:

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Comcast today announced a new partnership with Tile that will enable Xfinity customers to use their Xfinity X1 Voice Remote to locate Tile devices anywhere and see the results of their search on the television. This is the first video and voice control partnership of its kind for Tile and is another step in Comcast’s effort to make home automation simple and easy for millions of customers.

According to a survey from Esure Home Insurance, the average person spends more than 60 hours a year looking for misplaced items. Tile is the world’s best-selling Bluetooth tracker, helping users locate over three million items every day, including cars, backpacks, suitcases, keys, and wallets.

“This is a home automation partnership that helps solve real-life problems,” said Sri Solur, Senior Vice President, Comcast Cable. “Now, when a child arrives home from school, a parent can simply say, ‘Xfinity Home where’s Sam’s backpack?’ into their voice remote and see that it was left at school. This is just one of the many peace of mind features we are making available to our customers on our evolving home automation platform.”

Simple and easy-to-use, Tile Bluetooth trackers can be attached to any item. If the item is misplaced, lost or stolen, X1 customers can say, “Xfinity Home where are my keys?”, “Xfinity Home find my purse”, or “Xfinity Home locate Sam’s backpack” to display the last known location and address of the missing Tile on their TV screen.
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At launch, only Xfinity Home customers with the X1 voice remote can easily add their Tiles by downloading the Xfinity Home app (iOS or Android) and following the prompts in the mobile app. Later this year, Comcast and Tile plan to expand eligibility to all Xfinity Internet customers as well. ...

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Also on MCN: »www.multichannel.com/new ··· -home-x1

Zone-tv's XiveTV and Quark are now available via subscription-based XoD on the X1 platform for $4.99 per month each:

Zone·tv™ Brings SVODs XiveTV and Quark to Xfinity X1
Zone·tv press release, Business Wire - April 16, 2018
»www.businesswire.com/new ··· inity-X1

quote:

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Zone·tv, the largest provider of SVOD programming to service providers, today announces Quark and XiveTV, two online subscription video-on-demand services, are now available via Xfinity on Demand on Comcast’s X1 platform. X1 customers can find the services by saying “Quark” and “XiveTV” into their X1 voice remote or by navigating to them in the networks section of Xfinity On Demand. Quark and XiveTV have been developed with Alliant Content, a leading independent programmer of long-form factual film and television shows across digital platforms.

“We are thrilled to bring Quark and XiveTV to Xfinity X1 and to build on a great partnership that enables Comcast customers to enjoy and discover some of the best content on the planet from the best screen in the house: their television,” said Jeff Weber, CEO, zone·tv.

“Zone·tv and Alliant Content’s collaboration lets eternally curious viewers explore the universe - from African wildlife to space - as well as the impacts of history and technology through programming that is truly smart, entertaining and vivid,” said Greg Diefenbach, Managing Director for Alliant Content.

Quark’s ever-growing collection of high-quality programs covers the latest advances in science, technology and space exploration, while XiveTV boasts one of the largest collections of award-winning long-form documentary content to be found anywhere, spanning topics such as wildlife, history, adventure, and the paranormal.
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Quark and XiveTV cost $4.99 a month each. Other zone·tv SVODS available to Comcast customers on X1 include the fitness-focused FitFusion TV; kid-friendly PlayKids and Tumblebooks; and most recently, the nature-focused Lion Mountain TV. ...

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Also on MCN: »www.multichannel.com/new ··· -comcast

Acorn TV, an American by-subscription streaming service that offers programming from the UK and Commonwealth countries, is now available On-Demand on X1:

Comcast Plants Acorn TV in Xfinity On-Demand Menu
By Todd Spangler, Variety - April 9, 2018
»www.yahoo.com/news/comca ··· 164.html

quote:

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The British — and others — are coming to Comcast. Acorn TV, a subscription video-on-demand service specializing in U.K. and international television, is now available to the cable giant’s Xfinity TV customers nationwide.

It’s the first pay-TV distribution deal for RLJ Entertainment’s Acorn TV, which offers a lineup of mysteries, dramas, and comedies previously unavailable to U.S. audiences. The advertising-free SVOD service is available to Comcast subs for $4.99 monthly.

“The addition of Acorn TV and its curated collection of standout international television provides even more choice to our Xfinity TV customers, giving them another way to watch their favorite series or discover new and classic programs,” said Michael Imbesi, Comcast Cable’s VP of movies and pay-per-view programming.

Acorn TV’s originals include BBC comedy “Detectorists”; the new ITV drama “Girlfriends”; and Irish drama “Striking Out.” Exclusive content includes new seasons of Aussie period drama “A Place to Call Home”; Brit drama “Delicious,” centered on food, love and betrayal; Aussie medical dramedy “The Heart Guy”; and Australian dramedy “800 Words.” The service also offers long-running mystery series “Midsomer Murders,” “George Gentlyand,” “Murdoch Mysteries,” “The Brokenwood Mysteries,” and “Jack Irish,” a noir thriller starring Guy Pearce.

Acorn TV’s May programming lineup includes two original series: BBC Wales thriller “Keeping Faith” and Aussie family comedy “Sando.” Acorn TV will feature 10 originals in 2018, with plans to add more than 30 licensed international titles. ...

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Also on MCN: »www.multichannel.com/new ··· ast-deal

The NPR app is now live on my boxes.

FYI - For those of you following the current NCAA basketball tournament:

Comcast Adds Interactive Features to X1 for March Madness
By Jeff Baumgartner, Multichannel News - March 15, 2018
»www.multichannel.com/new ··· s/418706

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Comcast has added some enhancements to the Sports app on its X1 platform for set-top boxes as March Madness gets underway.

Among the enhancements that tie into the men’s college basketball tournament, the app features a special tile that displays the top-seeded teams in each region, a schedule of dates for each round, and access to previous results.

X1 subs can also use the app to track a regional bracket or zoom out for a look at the full tournament.

Those customers can also pull up the bracket by uttering, “Show me the bracket,” or the fuller March Madness experience on the platform by saying “NCAA Tournament” into the X1 voice remote. Comcast has also set up other voice commands that can display “knowledge cards” with team stats and comparisons if they say, for example, “Georgia State basketball.”

Comcast is also letting X1 subs restart all tournament games airing on TBS, TNT and truTV that are in progress via its Instant on Demand system. ...

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On Comcast's site: »corporate.comcast.com/st ··· -madness

Well that's gonna be pretty cool.

FYI - The "NPR One app" will be coming soon to the X1 platform:

Comcast to Stream NPR to X1 Boxes
Preps integrated rollout of NPR One app on cable operator's OTT-capable set-top box platform
By Jeff Baumgartner, Multichannel News - March 7, 2018
»www.multichannel.com/new ··· s/418522

quote:

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Adding another OTT option to the mix, Comcast will soon start to offer content from National Public Radio on its X1 set-top box platform.

Comcast, in the "coming weeks," plans to offer a TV-optimized version of the NPR One app, along with its mix of local and national news and podcasts, to X1 customers. About 60% of Comcast’s 21.3 million residential video subs are on X1.

The app via X1 will be available for free, though users have the option to login and create accounts (also free) that can personalize the experience.

As part of the integration, customers can use the X1 voice remote to launch the NPR One app (by saying “NPR” or “NPR One”), and NPR content will also be searchable and integrated with the X1 VOD menus, appearing along with other related content. Comcast said customers can also access content from their local NPR Member Station via the NPR One app on X1.

Further out, X1 customers will also be able to find specific NPR programs or podcasts by name or topic by saying, for example, “Show me Ask Me Another on NPR One.”

NPR One will be streamed over the internet to X1 boxes, making that content subject to Comcast’s internet data usage policies. ...

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The Comcast press release: »www.businesswire.com/new ··· -NPR-App

This is quite cool indeed, however I do wish the text was smaller so the full title of the song is shown, and not truncated.

Yes, those are some new Voice Remote features as was mentioned here: »Re: [X1-X2] New Voice Remote coming soon - the XR15

There is a new Shazam type functionality tied into the Voice Remote. During any show, movie, commercial, etc when a song is playing say "what song is this" and it can pull it for you. Even on Recorded clips.

Also you can say the exact length requested on FF/Rew, i.e. "rewind 2 minutes, 10 seconds" and it takes you exactly to that point

The Pandora X1 app has been updated now:

Comcast and Pandora Partner to Reinvent the Pandora Music Experience on Xfinity X1
Pandora’s Full Suite of Features – Including Access to Premium On-Demand, Ad-Free Radio Plus and Ad-Supported Radio Stations – Now Integrated Throughout the X1 Platform and Controllable with Voice Commands
It’s Now Easier Than Ever to Search, Discover and Play Music with Pandora and X1
Comcast/Pandora press release, Business Wire - December 18, 2017
»www.businesswire.com/new ··· 5485/en/

quote:

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Pandora, the largest streaming music provider in the U.S., and Comcast, a global media and technology company, today announced a completely reinvented streaming music experience on Xfinity X1 with a deeper Pandora integration. In addition to an entirely new look and feel, customers will enjoy access to Pandora’s on-demand Premium and ad-free radio Plus subscriptions over the Internet on X1 for the first time. Pandora’s integration with the X1 Voice Remote provides effortless access to music across all levels of service. The new Pandora experience also makes it easier than ever for customers to access and discover personalized music alongside the live, on-demand, DVR and web programming included in Xfinity TV.

“We’re seeing explosive growth in listening through in-home devices like X1, and we’re proud to be one of Comcast’s premier online music streaming partners,” said Chris Phillips, Chief Product Officer, Pandora. “Pandora continues to harness the power of X1 in new and innovative ways from voice-activation to easy, intuitive access to music throughout the platform, bringing music to the forefront of your in-home entertainment experience like never before.”

The new Pandora integration on X1 brings customers:

• Ability to choose the level of service that fits their needs. Pandora Premium allows consumers to search and play any song, album, playlist or station; Pandora Plus provides access to ad-free radio stations with additional skips and replays; Pandora’s free service enables access to personalized stations.

• Quick access to their favorite music simply by saying, “Pandora” into the X1 voice remote.

• Access to specific songs, albums or playlists with simple commands like “play ‘Santa’s Coming for Us’ by Sia on Pandora.”

• Immediate Pandora playback through a simplified sign-in experience.

• Pandora integrated with search and surfaced throughout Xfinity On Demand, including within popular destinations such as music, kids and Latino and on select artist profile pages.

“We are constantly improving the in-home entertainment experience by integrating new features and services into Xfinity X1,” said Chris Satchell, Executive Vice President, Chief Product Officer, Comcast Cable. “Our customers love the ability to play music through their television, which often have the best speakers in the house, and we are thrilled to expand our partnership with Pandora and provide Xfinity TV customers with seamless access to Pandora’s full suite of online features on X1.” ...

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Also on MCN: »www.multichannel.com/new ··· 1/417150