Streaming Platform and Free Live and On Demand Streaming Provider
For the village in Tibet, see
Xumo
.
Xumo, LLC
(
ZOO
-moh
) is an American
internet television
and
consumer electronics
company. It is a
joint venture
of
Charter Communications
and
Comcast
that operates the
free ad-supported streaming television
(FAST) and
advertising video on demand
(AVOD) service
Xumo Play
, and distributes Xumo Stream Box
digital media players
and Xumo TV
smart TVs
. The Xumo Play platform's service operations are based in the
Greater Los Angeles
suburb of
Irvine, California
. As of October 2020, Xumo Play has 24 million monthly active users.
[1]
It was originally a joint venture between Viant Technology and
Panasonic
; Viant's stake was later acquired by
Time Inc.
, and the service as a whole was acquired by Comcast in 2020?seeking to use it as a complement to its paid streaming service
Peacock
. In 2022, Comcast announced that Xumo would become a joint venture with Charter.
History
[
edit
]
Xumo was founded in 2011 as a
joint venture
between the Viant Technology subsidiary of
Meredith Corporation
(then the parent company of
Myspace
) and
Panasonic
.
[2]
In 2015, only
Vizio
and Panasonic offered the service. Other manufacturers added Xumo in 2016, including
LG Electronics
and
Funai
. As of May 2016, 78 channels were offered, with a total of 100 planned. The primary target audience was described as
millennials
who are not satisfied with
multichannel television
offerings.
[2]
In February 2016,
Time Inc.
acquired Viant.
[3]
The Vanderhook brothers began the company in 1999 as advertisementbanners.com, changing the name to Interactive Media Holdings in 2003 and Viant in 2015.
[4]
By July 2018, the Android app was live, available for download at the
Google Play Store
. By June 2019, according to CEO Colin Petrie-Norris, Xumo was available in over 35 million American households via a multi-screen distribution network of
smart TVs
, mobile, web, and streaming boxes. At the time, Xumo did not offer its service outside of smart TV platforms, including Channel Plus on
LG
's
WebOS
sets.
[3]
sold by Viant on some channels.
[2]
Xumo has the capability to learn what users watch, adding frequently viewed channels and programs at the top of lists.
[2]
On February 25, 2020, Comcast announced it would purchase Xumo from the Panasonic/Viant joint venture for an undisclosed sum. The acquisition of the service?which would continue to operate as an independent business, albeit within Comcast's
cable television
division?stems mainly from Xumo's partnerships with smart TV manufacturers (including LG, Panasonic, and Vizio), which would allow Comcast to use Xumo's placement to market or showcase
Xfinity
and other Comcast services as well as use its technology to develop additional streaming platforms. The company added content from the
NBCUniversal
programming library and the company's various television networks, along with adding its channels as a complementary part of
Peacock
, akin to Paramount's utilization of
Pluto TV
to offer content from its cable networks following the former
Viacom
's purchase of the competitor of 2019.
[5]
[6]
[7]
On November 19, 2020, Xumo announced it would begin producing its own original content for the service, starting with Bold Soul Studios's movie
White Elephant.
[8]
In April 2022, Comcast announced that it would contribute Xumo to a new
joint venture
with
Charter Communications
, which will also include retail sales of streaming devices and smart TVs using Comcast's X1 platform.
[9]
It was announced later in November that this joint venture would retain the Xumo name, with the streaming service slightly rebranded as
Xumo Play
, and Comcast's Xfinity Flex and XClass TV rebranded as Xumo Stream Box and Xumo TV, respectively.
[10]
[11]
In January 2023, Xumo announced plans to launch Xumo TV-- a line of
smart TVs
from
Element Electronics
?later that year.
[12]
It also launched Xumo TV models from
Hisense
and
TCL Technology
(marketed under the
Pioneer
brand), which are exclusive to
Best Buy
.
[13]
Programming
[
edit
]
Xumo is structured similarly to the pay television model, offering its content as designated channels categorized by program content type into 12 channel tiers:
- News ? consisting of mainstream news and opinion channels, as well as partisan, commentary-based outlets reflecting
progressive
and
conservative
viewpoints.
- TV & Movies ? general entertainment and movie channels.
- Sports ? includes live and previously-aired events, sporting news and analysis programs.
- Kids & Family ? channels aimed at children and family audiences.
- Food, Drink and Travel ? culinary and travel-oriented lifestyle channels.
- Comedy ? comedy-based channels, consisting of curated
viral video
and digital content services.
- Entertainment ? consisting of special-interest and viral video-based entertainment channels.
- Lifestyle ? lifestyle, travel and
home shopping
channels
- Pop Culture ? entertainment news, science, technology,
sci-fi
, curated video and
geek culture
-oriented channels.
- Science & Tech ? science, technology and educational documentary channels.
- Music ? consisting of
music videos
and video concerts.
- Fashion ? style-oriented channels.
As of February 1, 2020, Xumo carries over 190 channels packaging content acquired through various syndication and digital content deals. Current content partnerships for the service include the sister company
NBCUniversal
,
A&E Networks
,
Abrams Media
,
Advance Publications
,
CNET
,
Conde Nast
,
FBE
,
Sony Pictures
,
FilmRise
,
Fox Corporation
,
Fremantle
,
Jukin Media
,
Kabillion
,
Katz Networks
,
Meredith Corporation
,
NowThis
,
Paramount Global
,
PocketWatch
,
Refinery29
,
Stingray Group
,
This Old House Ventures
,
Time USA, LLC
,
Vin Di Bona Productions
, and
Warner Bros. Discovery
.
Traditional television channels whose direct or curated feeds are offered on Xumo include
History
,
Fuse
,
USA Network
(plus sister network
Syfy
,
E!
,
CNBC
,
MSNBC
and
Sky News
),
NASA TV
,
MTV
(plus sister network
Showtime
,
VH1
and
Nickelodeon
),
Discovery Channel
,
CNN
(plus sister network
HLN
,
HBO
and
Cartoon Network
),
Euronews
,
Bloomberg Television
,
Newsmax TV
,
Scripps News
,
Fox News
(and sister network
Fox Business
),
Home Shopping Network
(HSN),
QVC
,
Jewelry Television
,
Reelz
,
Shop LC
,
BeIN Sports Xtra
, and
Stadium
. AVOD services whose feeds are carried on Xumo include
NBC News Now
,
ABC News Live
,
CBSN
(plus sister network
CBS Sports HQ
and
ET Live
),
Cheddar News
,
TYT Network
(structured as a hybrid
SVOD
/AVOD service, but offered by Xumo as an AVOD offering), Nosey,
Dove Channel
,
Law & Crime
,
Fubo Sports Network
and
People TV
.
Availability
[
edit
]
Xumo content can be streamed through a number of desktop, mobile and internet-connected TV platforms including:
Android
and
Apple
iOS
/
iPadOS
devices,
Chromecast
,
Android TV
,
Apple TV
,
Xfinity
Flex,
Amazon Fire TV
,
Roku
,
Cox
Contour Stream Player,
LG
Channel Plus and LG Channels set models, and Smart TV models manufactured by
Vizio
, Panasonic,
Sanyo
,
Philips
,
Magnavox
,
Samsung
,
Hisense
and
Sharp Corporation
. Outside of the contiguous United States, Xumo and its supported apps are currently available on LG Smart TV models powering its Channel Plus and LG Channels platforms distributed in
Canada
(on Channel Plus platforms running
WebOS
3.5 or above),
Mexico
,
Brazil
,
France
,
Germany
,
Spain
,
Italy
and the
United Kingdom
(on LG smart TVs running WebOS 4.5 or above).
[14]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Hayes, Dade (2022-05-12).
"Comcast's Xumo Launches 'What To Watch' Channel With Xfinity Curation Shown To Spur Fivefold Increase In Viewer Engagement"
.
Deadline
. Retrieved
2022-11-13
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Palenchar, Joseph (May 5, 2016).
"Xumo Bringing More Free Video Content To More Smart TVs"
.
Twice
. Retrieved
May 9,
2016
.
- ^
a
b
Spangler, Todd (May 3, 2016).
"Time Inc.?Backed Startup Xumo Adds 10 Channels to OTT Service"
.
Variety
. Retrieved
May 9,
2016
.
- ^
"About Us"
.
viantinc.com
. Viant
. Retrieved
May 9,
2016
.
- ^
Jon Lafayette (February 25, 2020).
"Comcast Buys Ad-Supported Streaming Service Xumo"
.
Broadcasting & Cable
. Future US.
- ^
Sherman, Alex (February 25, 2020).
"Why Comcast agreed to buy Xumo, an ad-supported free streaming service"
.
CNBC
.com
.
NBCUniversal News Group
.
- ^
Todd Spangler (February 25, 2020).
"Comcast Acquires Xumo Free-Streaming Video Service"
.
Variety
.
Penske Media Corporation
.
- ^
Hepburn, Tmera (2020-11-19).
"XUMO Announces Its First Original Content Partnership"
.
Cord Cutters News
. Retrieved
2023-03-23
.
- ^
Hayes, Dade (April 27, 2022).
"Pay-TV Leaders Charter And Comcast Form Streaming Joint Venture Built On Xfinity Flex"
.
Deadline Hollywood
. Retrieved
April 27,
2022
.
- ^
Winslow, George (2022-11-02).
"Comcast, Charter Streaming Joint Venture Branded as 'Xumo'
"
.
TVTechnology
. Retrieved
2022-11-03
.
- ^
Hayes, Dade (2022-11-02).
"Comcast And Charter Name Their Streaming Joint Venture Xumo, Set Related Rebrand Of Flex And XClass TV & Outline Plans For Timing Of Launch"
.
Deadline
. Retrieved
2023-05-11
.
- ^
"Comcast, Charter JV Xumo to launch smart TVs with Element"
.
Fierce Video
. January 5, 2023
. Retrieved
March 31,
2023
.
- ^
"Comcast-Charter JV pitches Pioneer Xumo TVs exclusively at Best Buy"
.
Light Reading
. Retrieved
2024-01-13
.
- ^
"About XUMO"
.
Xumo
. Viant Technology/Panasonic
. Retrieved
February 25,
2020
.
External links
[
edit
]
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Live streaming
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Paid television
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Free, ad-supported, television (FAST)
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Discontinued
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See also
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