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Chief Executive Brian Roberts also announced the launch of a
voice-controlled remote control for Comcast's X1 operating
system that can search and record tens of thousands of TV shows
and movies with commands such as "Watch ESPN" or "Record
Saturday Night Live."
Comcast and other pay TV providers are adding new features to
lure and keep subscribers in the face of competition from online
video outlets such as Netflix Inc and Google Inc's YouTube.
The Kids Zone will be added to the X1 platform within the next
few months. It will include live content, digital video
recordings and on-demand movies and TV shows.
It also will carry ratings and reviews from Common Sense Media,
a non-profit group that focuses on the effects of media and
technology on children.
Roberts demonstrated new features at the Internet & Technology
Expo, an industry trade show in Chicago. He asked the
voice-controlled remote control to find "life is like a box of
chocolates," prompting the screen to tune to the scene in
"Forrest Gump" that included that quote.
He also joked about Comcast's failed $45 billion bid for Time
Warner Cable Inc, which the company dropped last month after
resistance from regulators.
"Show me the Comcast-Time Warner Cable merger," Roberts
instructed the device. A scene showing an explosion from the
"Fast & Furious" movie franchise appeared on screen.
"We are moving on," he said.
(Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Editing by Stephen Coates and Dan
Grebler)
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