Comcast In Talks To Buy Streaming Provider -- WSJ
December 27 2019 - 3:02AM
Dow Jones News
By Patience Haggin and Sahil Patel
This article is being republished as part of our daily
reproduction of WSJ.com articles that also appeared in the U.S.
print edition of The Wall Street Journal (December 27, 2019).
Comcast Corp. is in advanced talks to acquire video-streaming
company Xumo LLC, according to people familiar with the matter, as
the cable giant prepares to launch its own streaming service.
Talks between the two companies are exclusive, and it is
possible that negotiations could break down, some of the people
said. Financial terms of the prospective deal couldn't be
learned.
Xumo is one of a handful of companies that offer a free,
ad-supported video-streaming service across a range of
internet-connected TVs. Others include ViacomCBS-owned Pluto TV,
which was acquired for $340 million in January, and Tubi TV.
Irvine, Calif.-based Xumo TV was formed in 2011 by Viant
Technology LLC, which was then known as Interactive Media Holdings.
One of Xumo's shareholders is magazine and TV company Meredith
Corp. Xumo's app is available on services including Roku and on
smart TVs from manufacturers such as Vizio, Panasonic and
Samsung.
The potential acquisition would come as Comcast's NBCUniversal
prepares to launch its streaming service, Peacock, in April. Xumo
could provide technical and business support for Comcast's
streaming efforts across its pay-TV service, Xfinity, Peacock and
European pay-TV giant Sky, which Comcast acquired last year, some
of the people said.
Xumo also powers free, ad-supported streaming services from
other companies. It is used by LG Electronics Inc. for its free
video product LG Channels. Xumo also repackages traditional TV
content into new digital channels, a capacity that some traditional
TV programmers have used as they transition to video streaming.
Comcast has said that Peacock, which will have a library of
original content and classic shows such as "The Office," would rely
heavily on advertising rather than subscriptions.
Comcast Chief Financial Officer Michael Cavanagh said at a
recent conference that the company sees an opportunity for
additional advertising-supported services as the market becomes
saturated with more subscription-based streaming services on top of
traditional pay-TV.
Comcast has said subscribers would receive Peacock free, and the
company is working to reach deals with other cable providers that
would allow it to be free to pay-TV subscribers. The company is
also considering offering different subscription tiers.
Like its rivals, Comcast has been losing pay-TV customers as
more consumers opt to cut the cord and subscribe to streaming
services and web-based live-TV bundles. In addition to Peacock,
earlier this year the company entered the streaming hardware game
with its Flex device, which it decided to make available free to
all of its broadband-only customers.
Lillian Rizzo and Benjamin Mullin contributed to this
article.
Write to Patience Haggin at patience.haggin@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 27, 2019 02:47 ET (07:47 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024