Internet
Comcast Demonstrates the Future of Broadband Speed and 4K Ultra HD Video
Washington, D.C. and Philadelphia, PA
Chairman and CEO Brian L. Roberts demonstrates 3+Gbps broadband connection; Comcast also provides first public U.S. based transmission of 4K Ultra HD video.
Today Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) Chairman and CEO Brian L. Roberts showed the first 3+Gbps broadband connection by opening an email and downloading a 4K Ultra HD video file to a PC in a matter of seconds at NCTA’s The Cable Show 2013 in Washington, D.C.
In addition to the 3+Gbps download, Mr. Roberts said that Comcast will demonstrate the first public
U.S. based delivery of 4K Ultra HD video over its existing fiber/HFC network at the NCTA show (booth #3319). An emerging video standard, 4K Ultra HD video offers a display resolution four times greater than today’s 1080p high-definition standard and offers one of the highest quality pictures possible today.
"Comcast has one of the fastest networks in the world with tremendous flexibility, the greatest capacity, and the best economics to deliver America’s high-speed future to millions," said Mr. Roberts. "These demonstrations reinforce the capability of our existing network while showing we are ready today to take consumers wherever the future of broadband speed and video technology may go."
This is the fourth time that Mr. Roberts has demonstrated the industry’s speed leadership at the NCTA show, which illustrates the tremendous evolution of speed in the United States. In 1996, he showed a 10Mbps connection for the first time that quickly downloaded photos, and in 2007 he downloaded the Encyclopedia Britannica over a 160Mbps connection over a new DOCSIS 3.0 modem. In 2011, he demonstrated a 1Gbps broadband connection for the first time.
The American broadband industry has invested $1.2 trillion since 1996 to deliver the fastest speeds and latest innovation to consumers. Comcast alone has invested tens of billions of dollars to create a network across the U.S. that makes broadband widely available. At the core of Comcast’s network is a fiber backbone that stretches across the country with about 140,000 route miles of fiber – enough to wrap the earth nearly six times. As the nation’s largest ISP with nearly 20 million customers, Comcast already provides the fastest speeds to more homes than any other provider and has increased Internet speeds for its customers 11 times in 11 years.
Demonstrating the delivery of 4K Ultra HD on its existing network is another milestone in Comcast’s long history of changing the way consumers experience TV – including being one of the first companies to offer VOD, HD and 3D. While 4K Ultra HD is in the early stages, Comcast is ready to deliver what could be the next-generation of video as the content and devices are developed and become more readily available for use in consumers’ homes.
A video replay of Mr. Roberts’ presentation will be available on http://corporate.comcast.com/ncta2013.
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About Comcast Corporation:
Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) is a global media and technology company with two primary businesses, Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is the nation's largest video, high-speed Internet and phone provider to residential customers under the XFINITY brand and also provides these services to businesses. NBCUniversal operates 30 news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures and Universal Parks and Resorts. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.