98-596: Sky Ireland Limited is a subsidiary of Comcast -owned Sky UK and supplies television, internet and telephony services in Ireland . Its corporate headquarters are in Dublin which were opened by Taoiseach Enda Kenny on 18 January 2013. Sky Ireland employs around 900 staff in Dublin. When Sky Digital was launched in 1998 the new service used the Astra 2A satellite which was located at
196-421: A Cisco Systems company. There are tight controls over use of VideoGuard decoders; they are not available as stand-alone DVB CAMs ( conditional-access modules ). Sky has design authority over all digital satellite receivers capable of receiving their service. The receivers, though designed and built by different manufacturers, must conform to the same user interface look-and-feel as all the others. This extends to
294-439: A South Central Pennsylvania -based cable television and broadband services provider and unit of the former Susquehanna Pfaltzgraff company, for $ 775 million cash. Comcast previously owned approximately 30% of Susquehanna Communications through its affiliate company, Lenfest . In December 2005, Comcast announced the creation of Comcast Interactive Media , a new division focused on online media. In July 2006, Comcast purchased
392-819: A YouTube competitor. The move was seen by Variety as an attempt to appeal to the cord-cutting market. On April 28, 2016, Comcast officially announced its NBCUniversal division will acquire DreamWorks Animation for $ 3.8 billion. The acquisition completed on August 22, 2016; DreamWorks Animation was integrated into NBCUniversal Film and Entertainment as part of Universal Pictures . Universal took over distribution of DreamWorks Animation films beginning in 2019 with How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World after DreamWorks Animation's deal with 20th Century Fox ended. In September 2016, Comcast confirmed that it would launch an MVNO cellular network with Verizon Wireless . The service, described as being
490-462: A corporate spin-off from its parent, Jerrold Electronics , for U.S. $ 500,000. At the time, American Cable was a small cable operator in Tupelo, Mississippi , with five channels and 12,000 customers. In 1965, American Cable Systems purchased Storecast Corporation of America, a product placement supermarket specialist marketing firm. In 1968, American Cable Systems purchased its first franchise of Muzak ,
588-458: A "Wi-Fi and MVNO-integrated product" was expected to launch in mid-2017. The partnership and the addition of wireless would allow Comcast to offer a quadruple play of services. Including Comcast's Home Security offering, customers now have the option of a Quintuple Play. The service was officially announced on April 6, 2017, as Xfinity Mobile. On November 16, 2017, it was reported that Comcast attempted to purchase 21st Century Fox , following
686-475: A "firm offer". On April 12, the Panel on Takeovers and Mergers ruled that Disney had to acquire all of Sky within 28 days of fully acquiring Fox if the latter's acquisition of Sky was not completed by the time the merger was done, or if Comcast's counter-offer was not accepted. On April 25, 2018, Comcast made its formal counter-bid for Sky plc, offering £12.50 per-share; Sky subsequently withdrew its recommendation of
784-463: A 13% market share of broadband subscriptions. Comcast Comcast Corporation , formerly known as Comcast Holdings , is an American multinational telecommunications and media conglomerate incorporated and headquartered in Philadelphia . It is the fourth-largest broadcasting and cable television company worldwide by revenue (behind China Mobile , Verizon , and AT&T ). It
882-633: A 50/50 partnership that controlled the systems in the Houston , Southwest Texas, San Antonio , and Kansas City markets under the Time Warner Cable brand. After the dissolution, Comcast obtained the Houston system, and Time Warner retained the others. On January 1, 2007, Comcast officially took control of the Houston system but continued to operate under the Time Warner Cable brand until June 19, 2007. Media outlets began reporting on October 1, 2009 that Comcast
980-453: A Sky leased transponder, or actual payment for being carried. However, even in this case, Sky does not carry any control over the channel's content or carriage issues such as picture quality. In October 2007, Sky's parent company Sky plc (then BSkyB) announced that they would not accept new applications to launch channel on their EPG, citing "very significant memory constraints" on many of its older digiboxes. In June 2012, Sky Ireland launched
1078-590: A Sky+ box. Sky+ HD material is broadcast using MPEG-4 and most of the HD material uses the DVB-S2 standard. Interactive services and 7-day EPG use the proprietary OpenTV system, with set-top boxes including modems for a return path. Sky News , amongst other channels, provides a pseudo- video on demand interactive service by broadcasting looping video streams. Sky utilises the VideoGuard pay-TV scrambling system owned by NDS ,
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#17330855477721176-500: A US$ 60 billion acquisition offer by Comcast in favor of its deal with Disney, due to anti-competition concerns. NBCUniversal CEO Steve Burke stated that purchasing Sky would roughly double its presence in English-speaking markets, and allow for synergies between the respective networks and studios of NBCUniversal and Sky. Fox stated that it "remains committed to its recommended cash offer for Sky", and that Comcast had not yet made
1274-473: A brand of background music played in retail stores. Storecast was a client of Muzak. The company was re-incorporated in Pennsylvania on March 5, 1969, under the new name Comcast Corporation . Comcast's initial public offering occurred on June 29, 1972, with a market capitalization of U.S. $ 3,010,000. In 1977, HBO was first launched on a Comcast system with 20,000 customers in western Pennsylvania with
1372-464: A button on the remote and the receiver tuned to the show they wanted to watch. This unit also had a single button recording function, and controlled VCRs via an infrared output. Available in North America, it was the first commercially available unit for home use that had a locally stored guide integrated with the receiver for single button viewing and taping. A presentation on the system was given at
1470-806: A commercial services provider; and Xfinity Mobile, an MVNO of Verizon. Through NBCUniversal , Comcast is also the owner and operator of over-the-air national broadcast network channels such as NBC , Telemundo , TeleXitos , and Cozi TV ; multiple cable-only channels such as MSNBC , CNBC , USA Network , Syfy , Oxygen , Bravo , and E! ; the film studio Universal Pictures ; the VOD streaming service Peacock ; animation studios DreamWorks Animation , Illumination , and Universal Animation Studios ; and Universal Destinations & Experiences . It also has significant holdings in digital distribution, such as thePlatform , which it acquired in 2006; and ad-tech company FreeWheel, which it acquired in 2014. Since October 2018, Comcast
1568-406: A computer within its headend facility to present that data to subscribers in a format customized to the system's unique channel lineup. The EPG Channel would later be renamed Prevue Guide and go on to serve as the de facto EPG service for North American cable systems throughout the remainder of the 1980s, the entirety of the 1990s, and – as TV Guide Network or TV Guide Channel – for the first decade of
1666-489: A dashboard called SmartZone that allowed users to perform mobile functions online. There was also Cloudmark spam and phishing protection and Trend Micro antivirus . The address book is Comcast Plaxo software. In May 2008, Comcast purchased Plaxo for a reported $ 150 million to $ 170 million. Comcast won the Consumerist Worst Company In America ("Golden Poo") award in 2010. A gold trophy in
1764-582: A deal to purchase NBC Universal and that a formal announcement could be made sometime the following week. Following a tentative agreement on December 1, the parties announced that Comcast would buy a controlling 51% stake in NBC Universal, including Universal Pictures , for $ 6.5 billion in cash and $ 7.3 billion in programming on December 3. GE would take over the remaining 49% stake in NBC Universal, using $ 5.8 billion to buy out Vivendi's 20% minority stake in NBC Universal. On January 18, 2011,
1862-479: A deal valued at $ 45.2 billion. On February 13, it was reported that Time Warner Cable agreed to the acquisition. This was to add several metropolitan areas to the Comcast portfolio, such as New York City, Los Angeles , Dallas–Fort Worth , Cleveland , Columbus , Cincinnati , Charlotte , San Diego , and San Antonio. Time Warner Cable and Comcast aimed to merge into one company by the end of 2014 and both have praised
1960-653: A decrease of 6.2% compared to the prior year. Annual revenue increased by 4.3% over the same period. Their net debt was $ 91.2 billion, exceeding total shareholders equity of $ 80.9 billion as of December 31, 2022. With $ 18.8 million spent in 2013, Comcast has the seventh largest lobbying budget of any individual company or organization in the United States. Comcast employs multiple former U.S. Congressmen as lobbyists. The National Cable & Telecommunications Association , which has multiple Comcast executives on its board, also represents Comcast and other cable companies as
2058-470: A digitally displayed, non-interactive menu of programming scheduling information shown by a cable or satellite television provider to its viewers on a dedicated channel. EPGs are transmitted by specialized video character generation (CG) equipment housed within each such provider's central headend facility. By tuning into an EPG channel, a menu is displayed that lists current and upcoming television shows on all available channels. A more modern form of
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#17330855477722156-502: A five-night free preview getting a 15% sign up rate. In 1986, Comcast bought 26% of Group W Cable , a broadcast company, doubling its number of subscribers to 1 million. Also that year, Comcast made a founding investment of $ 380 million in QVC . In 1988, Comcast was able to buy a 50% share of SCI Holdings in a joint deal with Tele-Communications Inc. Comcast also acquired American Cellular Network Corporation in 1988 for $ 230 million, marking
2254-488: A hearing on the deal on April 9, 2014. The House Judiciary Committee planned its own hearing. On March 6, 2014, the United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division confirmed it was investigating the deal. In March 2014, the division's chairman, William Baer, recused himself because he was involved in the prior Comcast NBCUniversal acquisition. Several states' attorneys general have announced support for
2352-644: A new EPG for Sky+ HD boxes. The update boasts a new modernised look and improved functionality. The Sky EPG lists all channels carried on the Sky platform. Many channels are free, others are available only with a subscription. Channels on this list are owned by Sky and broadcast advertising specifically for the Irish market. Sky, and its sister companies, operate a number of channels in the UK and Ireland with some being joint ventures with other companies: Some other channels available on
2450-588: A new independent company, which is later known as the Fox Corporation since the 2019 launch. However, on December 11, 2017, Comcast officially dropped the bid, saying that "We never got the level of engagement needed to make a definitive offer." On December 14, Disney officially confirmed its acquisition of 21st Century Fox for $ 52.4 billion in stock, pending review from the United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division. On February 5, 2018,
2548-634: A new report by CNBC claims that despite the Disney/Fox deal, Comcast was considering topping Disney's $ 52.4 billion offer once the AT&;T – Time Warner merger goes through, after the Department of Justice Antitrust Division sued to block the merger on November 20, 2017. On February 27, 2018, Comcast offered to purchase 61% stake in Sky plc at a value of £12.50 per-share, approximately £22.1 billion. 21st Century Fox, which owns 39% stake in Sky, had previously declined
2646-625: A span of seven or 14 days. Data used to populate an interactive EPG may be distributed over the Internet , either for a charge or free of charge, and implemented on equipment connected directly or through a computer to the Internet. Television-based IPGs in conjunction with Programme Delivery Control (PDC) technology can also facilitate the selection of TV shows for recording with digital video recorders (DVRs), also known as personal video recorders (PVRs). In 1981, United Video Satellite Group launched
2744-401: A technician is coming. On 21 May 2024, Comcast announced Xfinity StreamSaver™, a streaming bundle combining Peacock, Netflix, and Apple TV+ for Xfinity Internet and TV customers. This bundle offered a subscription to Netflix Standard with ads, Peacock Premium, and Apple TV+, promised over 30% savings or nearly $ 100 annually. In April 2005, Comcast and Time Warner Cable announced plans to buy
2842-654: A total of 20 U.S. States. According to watchdog group Documented, in 2020 Comcast contributed $ 200,000 to the Rule of Law Defense Fund, a fund-raising arm of the Republican Attorneys General Association that was shown to have provided funding to the Save America March that devolved into an attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 . Comcast offers low cost internet and cable service to schools, subsidized by general broadband consumers through
2940-502: Is also an attribute upon which Comcast receives strong marks. In 2008, Black Enterprise magazine rated Comcast among the top 15 companies for workforce diversity. Comcast reported a net profit in each year during the period 2006 to 2022. As of 2020, the company was ranked 28th on the Fortune 500 rankings of the largest United States corporations by total revenue. For the fiscal year 2022, Comcast reported earnings of US$ 15.4 billion,
3038-476: Is also the parent company of Sky Group . Comcast is criticized and put under intense public scrutiny for a variety of reasons. Its customer satisfaction ratings were among the lowest in the cable industry during the years 2008–2010. It has violated net neutrality practices in the past and despite its commitment to a narrow definition of net neutrality, critics advocate a definition that precludes any distinction between Comcast's private network services and
Sky Ireland - Misplaced Pages Continue
3136-564: Is built into almost all modern receivers for digital cable, digital satellite , and over-the-air digital broadcasting . They are also commonly featured in digital video recorders such as TiVo and MythTV . Higher-end receivers for digital broadcast radio and digital satellite radio commonly feature built-in IPGs as well. Demand for non-interactive electronic television program guides – television channels displaying listings for currently airing and upcoming programming – has been nearly eliminated by
3234-463: Is described as a family business . Brian L. Roberts , its chairman and CEO, is the son of founder Ralph J. Roberts (1920–2015). Roberts owns or controls about 1% of all Comcast shares but all of the Class B supervoting shares, giving him an "undilutable 33% voting power over the company". Legal expert Susan P. Crawford has said this gives him "effective control over [Comcast's] every step". In 2010, he
3332-522: Is one of the UK's largest and oldest EPG producers, dating back to 1996 and currently in partnership with Humax and Skyworth . Scandinavia also is a highly innovative EPG market. Even in Italy , the EPG penetration is relatively high with 38%. In France , IPTV is the main driver of EPG developments. In contrast to many other European countries, Germany lags behind, due to a relatively slow digitization process and
3430-454: Is the third-largest pay-TV company, the second-largest cable TV company by subscribers, and the largest home Internet service provider in the United States. In 2023, the company was ranked 51st in the Forbes Global 2000 . Comcast is additionally the nation's third-largest home telephone service provider . It provides services to U.S. residential and commercial customers in 40 states and
3528-505: The District of Columbia . As the owner of NBCUniversal since 2011, Comcast is also a high-volume producer of films for theatrical exhibition and television programming, and a theme parks operator. It is the fourth-largest telecommunications company by worldwide revenue. Comcast owns and operates the Xfinity residential cable communications business segment and division; Comcast Business,
3626-509: The Middle East and Asia . Some IPG systems built into older set-top boxes designed to receive terrestrial digital signals and television sets with built-in digital tuners may have a lesser degree of interactive features compared to those included in cable, satellite and IPTV converters; technical limitations in these models may prevent users from accessing program listings beyond (at maximum) 16 hours in advance and complete program synopses, and
3724-624: The Personal video recorder (PVR) offering (branded Sky+ ). Sky maintains an electronic programme guide (EPG) which provides information about upcoming programmes and a list of channels. Channels available on Sky are assigned a three digit logical channel number which can be entered on a remote control to access the channel and determines in what order channels are listed. The EPG in Ireland gives priority to Irish channels. All channels are grouped into categories depending on their content. What section of
3822-511: The vertical blanking interval of analog television video signals) to distribute listings data to IPG-enabled consumer receiving equipment. In Europe, the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) published standard ETS 300 707 to standardize the delivery of IPG data over digital television broadcast signals . Listings data for IPGs integrated into digital terrestrial television and radio receivers of
3920-489: The 1990 IEEE consumer electronics symposium in Chicago . In June 1988 a patent was awarded that concerned the implementation of a searchable electronic program guide – an interactive program guide (IPG). TV Guide Magazine and Liberty Media established a joint venture in 1992 known as TV Guide On Screen to develop an EPG. The joint venture was led by video game veteran, Bruce Davis, and introduced an interactive program guide to
4018-683: The 20% which requires official registration . Comcast's PAC , the Comcast Corporation and NBCUniversal Political Action Committee, is among the largest PACs in the U.S., raising about $ 3.7 million from 2011 to 2012 for the campaigns of various candidates for office in the United States Federal Government . Comcast is also a major backer of the National Cable and Telecommunications Association Political Action Committee, which raised $ 2.6 million from 2011 to 2012. Comcast spent
Sky Ireland - Misplaced Pages Continue
4116-523: The 21st century. In 1986 at a trade show in Nashville , STV/Onsat, a print programming guide publisher, introduced SuperGuide, an interactive electronic programming guide for home satellite dish viewers. The system was the focus of a 1987 article in STV Magazine . The original system had a black-and-white display, and would locally store programming information for around one week in time. A remote control
4214-433: The 28.5°E orbital position, unlike the analogue service which was broadcast from 19.2°E . This was subsequently followed by more Astra satellites as well as Eutelsat 's Eurobird 1 (now Eutelsat 28A ) at 28.5°E), enabled the company to launch a new all-digital service, Sky, with the potential to carry hundreds of television and radio channels. The old position was shared with broadcasters from several European countries, while
4312-475: The BBC regions can be tuned in manually to all Sky boxes. Channel 4 provide all of their entertainment channels except 4Seven and More 4+1 on Sky Ireland's EPG. Channel 4's The Box Plus Network's 4Music is available but their other channels ( The Box , Kerrang! , Magic and Kiss are also not on the EPG in Ireland. As these are all free-to-air channels, they can be manually tuned. Welsh-language station S4C
4410-545: The DigiCable series of set top boxes from General Instrument shortly thereafter. See wiki on TV Guide for subsequent developments. Scientific Atlanta introduced the 8600X Advanced analog Set-top box in 1993 that included an interactive electronic program guide, downloadable software, 2-way communications, and pause/FF/REW for VCR-like viewing. Millions were deployed by Time Warner and other customers. In Western Europe , 59 million television households were equipped with EPGs at
4508-404: The EPG a channel gets allocated is determined by rules set up by Sky Ireland. Sky Ireland has no veto over the presence of channels on their EPG. Any channel which can get carriage on a suitable beam of a satellite at 28° East is entitled to access to Sky's EPG for a fee. Third-party channels which opt for encryption receive discounts ranging from reduced price to free EPG entries, free carriage on
4606-675: The EPG, associated with both television and radio broadcasting, is the interactive [electronic] programming guide (IPG, though often referred to as EPG). An IPG allows television viewers and radio listeners to navigate scheduling information menus interactively, selecting and discovering programming by time, title, channel or genre using an input device such as a keypad , computer keyboard or television remote control . Its interactive menus are generated entirely within local receiving or display equipment using raw scheduling data sent by individual broadcast stations or centralized scheduling information providers. A typical IPG provides information covering
4704-455: The EPG, rather than programming timers. The aspect of an IPG most noticed by users is its graphical user interface (GUI), typically a grid or table listing channel names and program titles and times: web and television-based IPG interfaces allow the user to highlight any given listing and call up additional information about it supplied by the EPG provider. Programs on offer from subchannels may also be listed. Typical IPGs also allow users
4802-540: The FCC approved the deal by a vote of 4 to 1. The transaction was completed on January 28, 2011. In December 2012, Comcast adopted a new corporate logo, which incorporates NBC's peacock logo to signify its ownership of the broadcaster. On February 12, 2013, Comcast announced that it would acquire the remaining 49% of General Electric's interest in NBCUniversal, in a deal valued at approximately $ 16.7 billion. The acquisition
4900-715: The Fox bid. Electronic program guide Electronic programming guides ( EPGs ) and interactive programming guides ( IPGs ) are menu-based systems that provide users of television , radio , and other media applications with continuously updated menus that display scheduling information for current and upcoming broadcast programming (most commonly, TV listings ). Some guides also feature backward scrolling to promote their catch up content. They are commonly known as guides or TV guides . Non-interactive electronic programming guides (sometimes known as "navigation software") are typically available for television and radio, and consist of
4998-871: The IPG such as media downloads, series recording and programming of the recordings for the IPG remotely; for example, IceTV in Australia enables TiVo-like services to competing DVR/PVR manufacturers and software companies. In developing IPG software, manufacturers must include functions to address the growing volumes of increasingly complex data associated with programming. This data includes program descriptions, schedules and parental television ratings , along with flags for technical and access features such as display formats, closed captioning and Descriptive Video Service . They must also include user configuration information such as favorite channel lists, and multimedia content. To meet this need, some set-top box software designs incorporate
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#17330855477725096-426: The Irish market as one of the few providers offering 'triple play' (phone, broadband and digital TV) to the public. As Sky's broadband and phone services use the existing telephone network ( LLU and non-LLU) and is widely available as a result. Sky Ireland has offered fibre broadband, using the network of former incumbent, eir , with speeds of up to 100 Mbit/s since 26 December 2014. As of September 2019, Sky has
5194-855: The National Digital Television Center in Centennial, Colorado as a wholly owned subsidiary, now known as the Comcast Media Center . In 2003, Comcast became one of the original investors in The Golf Channel . After Excite@Home went bankrupt in October 2001, Comcast took over providing internet directly to consumers in January 2002. On February 11, 2004, Comcast announced a $ 54 billion bid for Disney, including taking on $ 12 billion of Disney's debt. The deal would have made Comcast
5292-856: The Philadelphia, Detroit, Baltimore , Orange County, California , Sarasota and Union, New Jersey areas. Comcast's cable acquisitions in 1997 were Jones Intercable, Inc. with 1 million customers, and a stake in Prime Communications with 430,000 subscribers. In February 1998, Comcast sold its U.K. division to NTL for US$ 600 million, along with the division's $ 397 million in debt. In 1999, Comcast sold Comcast Cellular to SBC Communications for $ 400 million, releasing them from $ 1.27 billion in debt. Also in 1999, Comcast acquired Greater Philadelphia Cablevision, and launched Comcast University as well as Comcast Interactive Capital Group. In November 1999, Comcast purchased Lenfest Communications, who were
5390-719: The Seattle-based software company thePlatform. This represented an entry into a new line of business—selling software to allow companies to manage their Internet (and IP-based) media publishing efforts. On April 3, 2007, Comcast announced it would acquire the cable systems owned and operated by Patriot Media, a privately held company owned by cable veteran Steven J. Simmons, Spectrum Equity Investors and Spire Capital, that served approximately 81,000 video subscribers for $ 483 million. Comcast announced in May 2007 and launched in September 2008
5488-548: The Sky Signature package and are also available unencrypted on Saorview and Saorsat , excluding Virgin Media channels, which are only available on Saorview. The BBC provide a number of their channels on the Irish version of Sky's EPG. BBC One Northern Ireland, BBC Two Northern Ireland, BBC Three, BBC Four, CBBC and Cbeebies along with their HD variants are available on the EPG. Other BBC channels including BBC News, BBC Parliament and
5586-918: The Sky platform also carry Irish advertising, such as the channels provided by Channel 4. Sky subscribers in Ireland have a different choice of channels compared subscribers in the UK, Germany, Austria and Italy. The standard Irish channels RTÉ One , RTÉ One +1, RTÉ2 , RTÉ2 +1, RTÉjr , RTÉ News , TG4 , Cúla4 , Virgin Media One , Virgin Media Two , Virgin Media Three , Virgin Media Four and Oireachtas TV are available to all Irish subscribers. These channels are described in some Sky publications as "bonus channels". These channels are free-to-air channels but encrypted to avoid being shown outside of Ireland and Northern Ireland (where applicable). The channels are included with
5684-531: The U.S. government's E-Rate program. Critics have noted that many of the strongest supporters of Comcast's business deals have received substantial funding from the Comcast Foundation. However, it is important to note that for years, Comcast has been relying on subsidiaries to finance philanthropic pursuits. In 1963, Ralph J. Roberts in conjunction with his two business partners, Daniel Aaron and Julian A. Brodsky , purchased American Cable Systems as
5782-446: The ability to display grids and, in the case of DVRs intended for terrestrial use, the ability – with an Internet connection – to access listings and content from over-the-top services. A growing trend is for manufacturers such as Elgato and Topfield and software developers such as Microsoft in their Windows Media Center to use an Internet connection to acquire data for their built-in IPGs. This enables greater interactivity with
5880-582: The assets of bankrupted Adelphia Cable . The two companies paid a total of $ 17.6 billion in the deal that was finalized in the second quarter of 2006—after the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) completed a seven-month investigation without raising an objection. Time Warner Cable became the second-largest cable provider in the U.S., ranking behind Comcast. As part of the deal, Time Warner Cable and Comcast traded existing subscribers in order to consolidate them into larger geographic clusters. In August 2006, Comcast and Time Warner Cable dissolved
5978-563: The companies ultimately decided to keep only the Comcast name, with the company and new assets reincorporated in Pennsylvania on December 7, 2001. On November 18, 2002, Comcast officially acquired all assets of AT&T Broadband, thus making Comcast the largest cable television company in the United States with over 22 million subscribers. This spurred the start of Comcast Advertising Sales (using AT&T's groundwork) which would later be renamed Comcast Spotlight and now effectv, A Comcast Company. As part of this acquisition, Comcast also acquired
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#17330855477726076-485: The company was prompted to lay off a number of their employees; revenue for their theme park locations fell 81 percent to $ 311 million from $ 1.63 billion in 2019. In 2024, Comcast signed a deal with Starlink to provide satellite-based connectivity to business customers in regions with limited network access. On February 12, 2014, the Los Angeles Times reported that Comcast sought to acquire Time Warner Cable in
6174-603: The company was so widely criticized by its customers, the media, and its own workers. It concluded that Comcast's staff endured unreasonable corporate policies: "Customer service has been replaced by an obsession with sales; technicians are understaffed … tech support is poorly trained, and the company is hobbled by internal fragmentation." A widely read article by an anonymous Comcast call center employee appeared in November 2014 on Cracked . Titled "Five Nightmares You Live While Working For America's Worst Company", it claimed that Comcast
6272-409: The deal, emphasizing the increased capabilities of a combined telecommunications network, and to "create operating efficiencies and economies of scale". In 2014, critics expressed concern that the deal would give Comcast greater negotiating power in a number of areas, including rebroadcast fees with television channels, and peering agreements with ISPs. Critics noted in 2013 that Tom Wheeler ,
6370-562: The end of 2008, a penetration of 36% of all television households. The situation varies from country to country, depending on the status of digitization and the role of pay television and IPTV in each market. With Sky as an early mover and the BBC iPlayer and Virgin Media as ambitious followers, the United Kingdom is the most developed and innovative EPG market to date, with 96% of viewers having frequently used an EPG in 2010. Inview Technology
6468-525: The federal investigation. On April 24, 2015, Jonathan Sallet, general counsel of the F.C.C., explained that he was going to recommend a hearing before an administrative law judge, equivalent to a collapse of the deal. In August 2015, Comcast announced that it would increase Internet speeds for low-income customers from 5 Mbit/s to 10 Mbit/s, provide free wireless routers, and pilot an initiative to increase Internet access for low-income senior citizens. In September of that year Comcast also launched Watchable,
6566-429: The fifth largest lobbying organization in the United States, spending $ 19.8 million in 2013. Comcast was among the top backers of Barack Obama 's presidential runs, with Comcast vice president David Cohen raising over $ 2.2 million from 2007 to 2012. Cohen has been described by many sources as influential in the U.S. government, though he is no longer a registered lobbyist, as the time he spends lobbying falls short of
6664-556: The first EPG service in North America , a cable channel known simply as The Electronic Program Guide . It allowed cable systems in the United States and Canada to provide on-screen listings to their subscribers 24 hours a day (displaying programming information up to 90 minutes in advance) on a dedicated cable channel. Raw listings data for the service was supplied via satellite to participating cable systems, each of which installed
6762-576: The first time it became a mobile phone operator . In February 1990, Ralph Roberts' son, Brian L. Roberts, succeeded his father as president of Comcast. Two years later, the company's mobile division, Comcast Cellular, purchased a controlling interest in Metromedia 's Philadelphia-area cellular telephone interests, Metrophone. By 1994, Comcast owned 50% stock in the cable communications company Garden State Cable , who by that year were serving approximately 195,000 subscribers. That same year, Comcast became
6860-401: The head of the FCC, which has to approve the deal, is the former head of both the largest cable lobbying organization, the National Cable & Telecommunications Association, and as largest wireless lobby, CTIA – The Wireless Association . According to Politico , Comcast "donated to almost every member of Congress who has a hand in regulating it". The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee held
6958-458: The inability for the IPG to parse synopses for certain programs from the MPEG stream or displaying next-day listings until at or after 12:00 a.m. local time. IPGs built into newer television (including Smart TV ), digital terrestrial set-top box and antenna-ready DVR models feature on-screen displays and interactive guide features more comparable to their pay television set-top counterparts, including
7056-639: The largest media conglomerate in the world. However, after rejection by Disney and uncertain response from investors, the bid was abandoned in April. In 2004, Comcast sold its QVC shares to Liberty Media for $ 7.9 billion. On April 8, 2005, a partnership led by Comcast and Sony Pictures Entertainment finalized a deal to acquire MGM and its affiliate studio, United Artists , and created an additional outlet to carry MGM/UA's material for cable and Internet distribution. On October 31, 2005, Comcast officially announced that it had acquired Susquehanna Communications ,
7154-466: The launch of the @Home Network . Also in 1996, Comcast formed Comcast Spectacor , which became owner of the Philadelphia Flyers. In 1997, Microsoft invested $ 1 billion in Comcast, and the company launched its digital TV service. That same year, in partnership with The Walt Disney Company , Comcast got a 50.1% controlling interest in E! Entertainment. By December 31, 1997, it was available in
7252-619: The majority of channels received new numbering, with some receiving single digit changes, whilst others received new numbers entirely. Sky is currently transmitted from the Astra satellites located at 28.2° east ( 2A / 2C / 2E / 2F ) and Eutelsat 's Eutelsat 28A satellite at 28.5°E. Sky's standard definition broadcasts are in DVB -compliant MPEG-2 , with the Sky Cinema and Sky Box Office channels including optional Dolby Digital soundtracks for recent films, although these are only accessible with
7350-473: The market in late 1995 in the General Instrument CFT2200 set-top cable box. Leading competitors to TV Guide On Screen included Prevue Guide and StarSight Telecast. Telecommunications Inc, owner of Liberty Media, acquired United Video Satellite Group, owner of Prevue Guide, in 1995. TV Guide On Screen and Prevue Guide were later merged. TV Guide On Screen for digital cable set top boxes premiered in
7448-481: The minor role of pay television in that country. Interactive program guides are nearly ubiquitous in most broadcast media today. EPGs can be made available through television (on set-top boxes and all current digital TV receivers), mobile phones (particularly through smartphone apps ), and on the Internet. Online TV Guides are becoming more ubiquitous, with over seven million searches for "TV Guide" being logged each month on Google . For television, IPG support
7546-828: The most money of any organization in support of the Stop Online Piracy and PROTECT IP bills, spending roughly $ 5 million to lobby for their passage. Comcast also backs lobbying and PACs on a regional level, backing organizations such as the Tennessee Cable Telecommunications Association and the Broadband Communications Association of Washington PAC. Comcast and other cable companies have lobbied state governments to pass legislation restricting or banning individual cities from offering public broadband service. Municipal broadband restrictions of varying scope have been passed in
7644-455: The new company, while Comcast owned 51%. Vivendi , which owns 20%, would have to sell its stake to GE. It was reported that under the current deal with GE that it would happen in November or December. It was also reported that Time Warner would be interested in placing a bid, until CEO Jeffrey L. Bewkes directly denied interest, leaving Comcast the sole bidder. On November 1, 2009, The New York Times reported Comcast had moved closer to
7742-433: The new position at 28.5°E came to be used almost exclusively for channels that broadcast to the United Kingdom and Ireland. New Astra satellites joined the position in 2000 and 2001, and the number of channels available to customers increased accordingly. This trend continued with the launch of Eurobird 1 (now Eutelsat 28A) in 2001. Additionally, some channels occasionally received new numbering — However, in early 2006,
7840-561: The news 10 days earlier that Disney negotiated with Fox to acquire the same assets. Like Disney, the deal included the 20th Century Fox film and television studios, cable entertainment and broadcast satellite networks including FX Networks , National Geographic Partners , Fox Sports Networks , and international channels such as Star India . It would not include the Fox Broadcasting Company , Fox Television Stations , Fox Sports , and Fox News units, all which will be spun-off into
7938-493: The ninth largest cable television operator at the time and were the largest operator in the Philadelphia area. This consolidated Comcast's control over all of the Philadelphia region, and earned them approximately 1.3 million additional cable subscribers. The purchase of Lenfest also bought Comcast the remaining 50% stock of the cable operator Garden State Communications — a company whom Comcast had already owned half of in partnership with Lenfest for years. Comcast quickly replaced
8036-820: The option of searching by genre, as well as immediate one-touch access to, or recording of, a selected program. Reminders and parental control functions are also often included. The IPGs within some DirecTV IRDs can control a VCR using an attached infrared emitter that emulates its remote control. The latest development in IPGs is personalization through a recommendation engine or semantics . Semantics are used to permit interest-based suggestions to one or several viewers on what to watch or record based on past patterns. One such IPG, iFanzy , allows users to customize its appearance. Standards for delivery of scheduling information to television-based IPGs vary from application to application, and by country. Older television IPGs like Guide Plus + relied on analog technology (such as
8134-652: The other hand, customarily rely upon third-party listings metadata aggregators to provide them with their on-screen listings data. Such companies include Tribune TV Data (now Gracenote , part of Nielsen Holdings ), Gemstar-TV Guide (now TiVo Corporation ), FYI Television, Inc. in the United States and Europe; TV Media in the United States and Canada; Broadcasting Dataservices in Europe and Dayscript in Latin America ; and What's On India Media Pvt. Ltd in India , Sri Lanka , Indonesia ,
8232-574: The present day is typically sent within each station's MPEG transport stream , or alongside it in a special data stream. The ATSC standard for digital terrestrial television, for instance, uses tables sent in each station's PSIP . These tables are meant to contain program start times and titles along with additional program descriptive metadata. Current time signals are also included for on-screen display purposes, and they are also used to set timers on recording devices. Devices embedded within modern digital cable and satellite television receivers, on
8330-699: The rest of the Internet. Critics also point out a lack of competition in the vast majority of Comcast's service areas; in particular, the limited competition among cable providers. Given its negotiating power as a large ISP, some suspect that it could leverage paid peering agreements to unfairly influence end-user connection speeds. Its ownership of both content production (in NBCUniversal) and distribution (as an ISP) has raised antitrust concerns. These issues and others led to Comcast being dubbed "The Worst Company in America" by The Consumerist in 2010 and 2014. Comcast
8428-523: The second-tallest skyscraper in Pennsylvania. In the fall of 2018, it finished construction of the 1,121 ft (342 m) Comcast Technology Center , Pennsylvania's tallest skyscraper, adjacent to its original headquarters. As of 2019, the company had 184,000 employees. Comcast is often criticized by the media and its own staff for its less-than-upstanding policies of employee relations. A 2014 investigative series published by The Verge involved interviews with 150 Comcast employees, and examined why
8526-413: The shape of a pile of human feces was delivered to Comcast Corporate Headquarters to commemorate the unmatched level of enmity flowing from their customer base to their business. Comcast responded immediately by publicly acknowledging the dubious award and citing ongoing efforts to improve its customer service. One effort to change this is a new app called Tech ETA that allows customers to see exactly when
8624-423: The ten-year general manager at Garden State with their own executive, and eventually Garden State ceased operating under its own name and was fully merged to become a part of the Comcast Corporation. In 2001, Comcast announced it would acquire the assets of the largest cable television operator at the time, AT&T Broadband , for $ 44.5 billion. The proposed name for the merged company was "AT&T Comcast", but
8722-414: The third-largest cable operator in the United States, with around 3.5 million subscribers following its purchase of Maclean-Hunter 's American division for $ 1.27 billion. Comcast grew to 4.3 million subscribers the following year with the purchase of the cable operation of E. W. Scripps Company for $ 1.575 billion in stock. Comcast offered internet connection for the first time in 1996, with its part in
8820-468: The user could use the guide without having to be on a particular satellite or service. In March 1990, a second generation SuperGuide system was introduced that was integrated into the Uniden 4800 receiver. This version had a color display and the hardware was based on a custom chip; it was also able to disseminate up to two weeks of programming information. When the user found the show of interest, they pressed
8918-543: The widespread availability of interactive program guides for television; TV Guide Network, the largest of these services, eventually abandoned its original purpose as a non-interactive EPG service and became a traditional general entertainment cable channel, eventually rebranding as Pop in January 2015. Television-based IPGs provide the same information as EPGs, but faster and often in much more detail. When television IPGs are supported by PVRs , they enable viewers to plan viewing and recording by selecting broadcasts directly from
9016-503: Was carried by Sky Ireland for many years where its rugby union broadcasts were popular despite the language barrier; it was removed from the EPG on August 9th 2018 due to rights issues. ITV and the Channel 5 family of channels have to be added manually to Sky boxes in Ireland. In February 2013 BSkyB launched its broadband and telephone product in Ireland, and have made significant headway into
9114-610: Was completed on March 19, 2013. Comcast reported that third-quarter net profits in 2020 fell 37 percent to $ 2.02 billion from $ 3.22 billion the previous year, in part due to the limited capacity measures for the COVID-19 pandemic at theme parks like Universal Studios and movie theaters, with revenues falling 4.8 percent. With their theme park in California being closed since March 2020 and limited capacity at locations in Florida and Japan ,
9212-493: Was in talks to buy NBC Universal . Comcast denied the rumors at first, while NBC would not comment on them. However, CNBC itself reported on October 1 that General Electric was considering spinning NBC Universal off into a separate company that would merge the NBC television network and its cable properties such as USA Network, Syfy and MSNBC, as well as Universal Pictures , with Comcast's content assets. GE would maintain 49% control of
9310-532: Was included on CableFAX magazine's "Top 10 Places to Work in Cable", which cited its "scale, savvy and vision". Similarly, the Philadelphia Business Journal awarded Comcast the silver medal among extra-large companies in Philadelphia, with the gold medal going to partner organization, Comcast-Spectacor. The Boston Globe found Comcast to be that city's top place to work in 2009. Employee diversity
9408-810: Was obsessed with sales, did not train its employees properly, and concluded that "the system makes good customer service impossible." Comcast has also earned a reputation as anti-union. A company training manual says, "Comcast does not feel union representation is in the best interest of its employees, customers, or shareholders". A dispute in 2004 with CWA , a labor union representing many employees at Comcast's Beaverton, Oregon offices, led to allegations of management intimidating workers, requiring them to attend anti-union meetings and unwarranted disciplinary action for union members. In 2011, Comcast received criticism from Writers Guild of America for its policies regarding unions. Despite these criticisms, Comcast has appeared on multiple "top places to work" lists. In 2009, it
9506-502: Was one of the highest paid executives in the United States, with total compensation of about $ 31 million. As of February 18, 2024: Comcast is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and has offices in Atlanta , Detroit , Denver , Manchester, New Hampshire and New York City . On January 3, 2005, it announced it would become the anchor tenant in the new Comcast Center in downtown Philadelphia—at 975 ft (297 m),
9604-412: Was used to interact with the unit. When the user found a show they wanted to watch, they would have to turn off the guide and then tune the satellite receiver to the correct service. The system was developed by Chris Schultheiss of STV/OnSat and engineer Peter Hallenbeck. The guide information was distributed by satellite using the home owner's dish as the receiver. The information was stored locally so that
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