Comcast for the Pyeongchang Games will expand the merging of linear TV and live digital streams it used two years ago in Rio. Comcast Chair & CEO Brian Roberts in N.Y. today outlined plans to deliver more than 2,400 hours of live, on-demand and online streaming coverage of the Olympics through its Xfinity X1 connected TV platform, offering seamless switching between TV and digital feeds. Features will include content searching by individual sport and athlete; updated medal counts and daily summaries; and more than 50 exclusive virtual Olympics channels offering highlights and other curated video playlists. Comcast will also make a similar experience available to subscribers via online and mobile platforms.
“We started this idea in Rio, but have now completely transformed it for these Olympics,” Roberts said. The effort is supported in part by an improved voice control function for X1 boxes that Comcast says is now receiving more than half a billion requests per month from users. Additionally, Comcast will make 4K HDR content available from an Olympics for the first time. That content will be available on a next-day basis. Nearly 60% of Comcast video subscribers now have X1 capability, up from 40% during the Rio Games. Comcast is a USOC sponsor.
