Comcast

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Xfinity Stream app for Apple TV makes cable box (mostly) superfluous

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Xfinity Stream app for Apple TV makes cable box (mostly) superfluous
Your Apple TV can be your cable box with the new Xfinity Stream app.
Photo: Comcast/Apple

An Apple TV can now be used to watch all of Comcast’s live, on demand and DVR programming. The cable behemoth’s subscribers just need to install the newly-released Xfinity Stream app on Apple’s streaming box.

Thursday’s release makes it simple for Apple TV users to add Xfinity access to additional rooms. No traditional cable box necessary.

Comcast finally adds Chromecast support to Xfinity iOS app

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Chromecast and iPad
Google’s Chromecast just became more useful for Xfinity subscribers.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Comcast on Tuesday made it much easier for Xfinity subscribers to watch cable channels on any TV. That’s because the Xfinity Stream app got support for Google’s Chromecast player at long last.

This allows users to stream live content or recorded shows to this inexpensive video player.

Verizon, Comcast and T-Mobile won’t cut off nonpaying customers before June 30

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Comcast, Verizon and T-Mobile will cut you some slack during the COVID-19 crisis.
Your Mac and iPhone will continue to get service from Comcast, Verizon or T-Mobile if you’re laid off during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Photo: Pexels CC

Verizon or T-Mobile won’t disconnect your iPhone if you can’t pay your bill because COVID-19 cost you your job. And Comcast won’t cut your Mac off from the internet either.

The companies committed on Monday to not terminate service or charge late fees through June 30.

NBCUniversal streamer Peacock comes early to Comcast customers

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peacock
Peacock is ready to take on Netflix and Apple TV+.
Photo: NBCUniversal

Comcast is jumping into the streaming wars this week with an early preview of Peacock that gives customers access to over 15,000 hours of movies and TV shows from NBCUniversal. Peacock isn’t set to launch to the public until July, but if you’re an Xfinity X1 or Flex customer, you can get a taste of service starting on Wednesday, April 15, 2020.

NBCUniversal is set to challenge Apple TV+ and Netflix in 2020

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The Office
NBCUniversal will be the only place to stream The Office starting in 2021.
Photo: NBC Universal

Apple TV+ will be getting some fresh competition in the streaming wars courtesy of Comcast come April of next year.

Comcast revealed the launch date of its upcoming NBCUniversal streaming service during its latest earnings call. NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke also said that the service is built on a platform similar to Sky’s Now TV in the UK.

Apple Watch and iPad with LTE head for Xfinity Mobile

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Apple Watch Series 4
Apple Watch along with several iPad tablets are options for Xfinity Mobile customers.
Photo: Apple

In a better-late-than-never scenario, Comcast’s Xfinity Mobile wireless carrier will soon begin offering two recent iPad models along with last year’s Apple Watch. These are the first non-smartphones available from this company, and all have built-in 4G LTE wireless networking.

Apple strong-armed cable companies into selling more iPads and Apple TVs

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Apple TV 4K sale. Get yourself a good deal on the latest Apple TV 4K.
The world’s largest tech company used it’s power to make people sell its other products.
Photo: Apple

Comcast and Charter made some potentially high risk deals with Apple in order to secure rights to sell the iPhone on their struggling networks.

Even though they are the two largest cable companies in the US, Apple was able to strong-arm Comcast and Charter into selling large numbers of other Apple products. In some cases they had to agree to sell them at a discount and eat the subsidized cost.

Disney takes over Hulu as Apple TV+ competition builds

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Hulu
Live sports could be Hulu’s biggest selling point.
Photo: Hulu

The Walt Disney Company now owns not one, but two TV streaming services.

After partnering with various media companies on Hulu for years, Disney has slowly been buying up its partners’ stake in the streaming service. Its recent acquisition of 21st Century Fox gave it 60% ownership, but Disney just revealed that it struck a deal with Comcast that will give it complete ownership of Hulu.

Comcast throttles Xfinity Mobile customers

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Xfinity Mobile is getting throttled.
Videos played over Xfinity Mobile will appear at a lower resolution, and tethering is getting slowed down.

Comcast put a limit on video resolution for its Xfinity Mobile subscribers. Going forward, the maximum will be 480p. 

In addition, subscribers to its unlimited data plan get throttled to 3G speeds when acting as a hotspot for another device.

The FCC just killed net neutrality

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Slow internet
This could change the internet as we know it.
Photo: Pexels

In a shocking change to internet protocols in the US, the Federal Communications Commission has voted to repeal net neutrality.

The FCC voted to repeal the landmark rules that protect consumers from being charged special prices for accessing certain parts of the internet. By scraping the neutrality regulations, The FCC just opened the doorway for Internet service providers to block websites or make users pay more to get some content.

Apple approached Time Warner about possible acquisition

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Apple TV might get exclusive TV shows.
Buying Time Warner would be great for Apple TV.
Photo: Apple

AT&T isn’t the only company interested in acquiring HBO’s parent company Time Warner Inc.

Apple executives approached the company about a potential merger a few months ago, according to a new report that claims the iPhone-maker is keeping a close eye on Time Warner’s advanced acquisition talks with AT&T.

$5 service will break up with Comcast for you

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Cancelling your cable plan is a more difficult process than it should be.
Cancelling your cable plan is a more difficult process than it should be.
Photo: Mike Mozart/FlickrCC

I wonder how many actual hours I’ve wasted sitting on hold, navigating audio phone menus and arguing with cable company representatives over why I want to cancel my service. I’m betting it’s a lot, and I’m betting that you have been victim to this ridiculous gate-keeping system, too.

AirPaper, a new internet service out of the San Francisco Bay Area, will cancel your Comcast cable subscription — one of the hardest plans to cancel — for just five bucks.

Comcast denies talking with Apple about TV service

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Apple isn't talking with NBC's parent company about a TV service. Photo: NBCUniversal
Apple hasn't approached NBC's parent company about a TV service. Photo: NBCUniversal

It turns out Apple isn’t talking with NBCUniversal about partnering for its forthcoming TV service. At least not yet.

How do we know? Because Comcast, NBCUniversal’s parent company, hasn’t been approached by Apple at all. But that doesn’t mean NBCUniversal’s content won’t be on Apple’s service when it launches.

Comcast’s new TV remote rips off Apple’s iconic tagline

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Does this tagline look familiar? Photo: John Anthony/Twitter
Does this tagline look familiar? Photo: John Anthony/Twitter

Apple is no stranger to having competitors copy its style. Samsung, HP, and Xiaomi have all been caught in the act multiple times, but the last company we expected to rip off Apple is Comcast.

For its new cable remote, Comcast has taken a page out of Apple’s playbook by copying the company’s iconic “Designed by Apple in California” tagline. The copy job is so bad, they didn’t even bother to change the font. It looks like the words “Comcast” and “Philadelphia” were basically slapped over Apple’s original tagline after production.

Take a look at the ‘premium’ remote below:

Apple TV’s huge update gets delayed until 2015

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The next version of Apple TV may allow you to take your viewing with you wherever you go. Photo: Apple
The next version of Apple TV may allow you to take your viewing with you wherever you go. Photo: Apple

We’ve been waiting more than two years to get a decent upgrade for the AppleTV, but a new report suggests that Apple isn’t planning to launch the device this year, thanks to cable companies dragging their heals on deals.

The pending merger of Comcast and Time Warner have also been holding up the release, according to sources at The Information, who says Apple has told its engineers not to expect a launch until 2015.

Comcast Reassures Us About The Obvious: A New Apple TV Is Coming

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ACCAppleTV

You may have heard that Comcast wants to buy Time Warner. In a proposal published today that pitches the merger to the FCC, Comcast drops a hint about Apple’s future plans for the TV.

Although by no means a definite indication beyond the previous rumors that something new is coming, Comcast says that Apple is working on a set-top box. Given that Apple and Comcast have been in talks, the cable giant would be in a position to know.

It’s Macworld Day Zero And Rumors Of Retina Airs On Our All-New CultCast

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We’ve descended upon San Francisco for Macworld 2014! Join us for our show expectations, plus plenty of news, rumors, and discussion on: why 2014 might be the year for Retina Macbook Airs; Apple’s plans for a streaming TV service with Comcast; Office coming to iPad; the problem with emojis; and why iTunes needs to be more like Spotify.

Snicker your way through each week’s best Apple stories! Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let the uproarious good time commence.

And thanks to Lynda.com for sponsoring this episode! Learn at your own pace from expert-taught video tutorials at Lynda.com.

WSJ: Apple Talking To Comcast About A Streaming TV Service

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Screen Shot 2014-03-23 at 9.40.53 PM

Apple and Comcast are in the early stages of negotiating a streaming TV service, according to The Wall Street Journal. The service “would use an Apple set-top box and get special treatment on Comcast’s cables to ensure it bypasses congestion on the Web.”

Rumors have been saying that Apple is working on a TV streaming product for years, and this latest report suggests that Apple is concerned about its customers have enough bandwidth to make the experience worthwhile at home.

Mavericks Gets New Features And America’s Internet Needs Your Voice On The CultCast

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cultcast-iPad-Mini-new-logo.jpg

This time on The CultCast: hipsters have beards installed; the mysterious life of Timothy Cook; exciting rumors around the new Jobs movie; Mavericks 10.9.2’s features and fixes; why you should install iOS 7.0.6 like, right now; Netflix pays off Comcast; and we’re too sexy for this podcast.

Laugh your way through each week’s best Apple stories! Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let the audio adventure begin.

And thanks to Lynda.com for sponsoring this episode. Learn at your own pace from expert-taught video tutorials at Lynda.com.

iPhone 6 Rumors And We Can’t Stop Flappin’ On Our Newest CultCast

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cultcast-iPad-Mini-new-logo.jpg

We’ll never stop Flapping! On this CultCast, we investigate the worldwide obsession with the iOS wünder-game, Flappy Bird, and the bizarre stories of why the game’s developer pulled the wildly popular game so abruptly from the App Store. Plus, some new iPhone 6 rumors surface, and a Macintosh super-grid you’ve never heard of is hunting down a cure for cancer.

Softly giggle your way through each week’s best Apple stories! Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let the audio adventure begin.

And thanks to Lynda.com for sponsoring this episode. Learn at your own pace from expert-taught video tutorials at Lynda.com.

Comcast’s Time Warner Cable Acquisition Throws Apple TV Partnership Into Doubt

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The next version of Apple TV may allow you to take your viewing with you wherever you go. Photo: Apple
The next version of Apple TV may allow you to take your viewing with you wherever you go. Photo: Apple

Comcast, the number one cable provider in the U.S., has announced that it plans to acquire Time Warner Cable, the second largest cable firm in the U.S., for a reported $45 billion.

The deal — set to be officially announced later today — will see Comcast offer $158.82 per share in an all-stock deal.

Apple Acquires Closed Video Search Startup Matcha

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Matcha

Apple has acquired Matcha, a second-screen video search and recommendation service that was recently closed, for a fee believed to be between $1 million and $1.5 million.

Matcha was previously available as an iOS app, and it allowed users to get an overview of everything they could watch on a variety of cable TV networks and video-streaming services. But the service was closed back in May as it focused on a new direction — one which will now be controlled by Apple.

Cable Companies Band Together To Offer Free 4G/LTE Alternative

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Cable companies begin offering free roaming Wi-Fi to customers
Cable companies begin offering free roaming Wi-Fi to customers

LTE devices, including iPads, offer users two major advantages: speeds typically faster than many wired providers (in my neck of the woods, Verizon LTE is just over twice as fast as Time Warner’s Roadrunner Turbo) and ubiquitous access for LTE devices (and any devices tethered to them) that is a lot more convenient than relying on public network or hotspots like those found in your neighborhood Starbucks. A downside is that LTE’s speeds make it easy to rack up a large bill.

If you’re looking for another high-speed wireless option that offers better bang for your buck, there’s one joining the field to consider  – and it’s coming from an unlikely source with an unlikely price. Five major cable companies are joining forces to deliver ubiquitous Wi-Fi coverage for any of their subscribers… for free.