A recent update to Comcast’s Xfinity TV app for mobile devices has opened up access to the live feeds of ABC and NBC, though only in select markets.
That update, delivered in early May 4, noted that “[i]n limited markets, live local broadcast channels NBC and ABC can now be streamed when you’re on the go.” The update also enhanced the app’s VOD feature with more categories and suggestions, the ability to buy on-demand content and stream and download it without leaving the app, and allow for users to dismiss the video player via a new “minibar” that resides at the bottom of the screen.
As for the live ABC and NBC feeds, Comcast confirmed that access is currently limited to the signals offered in the broadcasters’ respective owned-and-operatedmarkets.
NBC and ABC also offer live streams in some markets via separate authenticated apps that require a pay TV subscription, but this latest update gives Comcast a way to integrate out-of-home access to those live feeds into the Xfinity TV app, which is being unified to support VOD and live TV that’s available to customers when they are accessing the app in the home or on the go. See this Q&A with Matt Strauss, Comcast Cable’s executive vice president and general manager, video services, for more about that.
