At long last, Comcast has finally realized what consumers have known for years: Netflix — and its increasing focus on original series, not the cable and broadcast library — isn’t competition. It’s complementary. And so two of the biggest companies in media are about to lay down their metaphorical arms and start working together.
Tech news site Recode reports today that Netflix will indeed be allowed on Comcast’s “X1 platform,” the fancy all-digital box Comcast has been rolling out to its Xfinity customers over the past few years.
As yet, there is no public timeline before the integration. The two companies issued a joint statement to Recode, saying only, “Comcast and Netflix have reached an agreement to incorporate Netflix into X1, providing seamless access to the great content offered by both companies. We have much work to do before the service will be available to consumers later this year. We’ll provide more details at that time.”
Netflix has struck similar deals with smaller cable operators for a few years now.
Netflix has for years been positioning itself as a content company in competition with HBO, rather than a cable alternative in competition with Comcast.
Comcast, meanwhile, has been for years touting its X1 system as an all-inclusive platform that can run apps and itself be basically an alternative to a smart TV. And what are smart TVs and other platforms — like Roku, Chromecast, Apple TV, and Amazon Fire TV — actually for these days? Netflix and your other streaming accounts, of course.
Recode also speculates that the deal between Comcast and Netflix may include some kind of bonus to Comcast if more Netflix subscribers join through the platform.
Still, it’s a bit surprising to come from Comcast, since the “ultimate frenemies” have had a contentious relationship in recent years.
Comcast will let customers get Netflix on its set-top box (which is a very big deal) [Recode]
by Kate Cox via Consumerist
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