Comcast Connects Troops With Loved Ones for the Holidays

MANCHESTER, N.H., Dec. 16, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Comcast today announced the launch of "Troop Greetings On Demand," an annual service that delivers special holiday greetings from military personnel stationed overseas to their loved ones back home to watch whenever and as often as they wish.  For the seventh consecutive year, Comcast is offering Troop Greetings On Demand at no additional cost to its digital cable customers through the end of January 2011.  The video greetings are now accessible under the "Get Local" section of Comcast's signature On Demand library.

This week, Comcast began reaching out to the nearly 1,200 families in states from Maine to Virginia with messages waiting for them to tell them how to view their holiday salutes.

"This special time of year is about family, friends and good will in the community, and we are proud to use our On Demand technology to bring holiday greetings from our troops overseas to their loved ones back home as part of our commitment to powering dreams in the communities where we live and work," said Kevin Casey, President of Comcast's Northeast Division.

To compile Troop Greetings On Demand, Comcast secured hundreds of videotapes from Army/Air Force Hometown News Service and edited them into short video greetings for viewers.  Each message includes the service member's name and hometown, and some messages even include the serviceperson's spouse and children.  Featured messages are from military personnel and civilian staff stationed around the world at bases in the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Japan, Alaska, Korea and other remote locations.

To Watch Troop Greetings On Demand:

On Demand allows digital cable customers to watch the personalized holiday greetings at a time most convenient for them, and as often as they want.  The greetings are part of Comcast's growing On Demand lineup, which now offers more than 20,000 programs a month that can be viewed on customers' own schedules with the ability to pause, fast-forward and rewind.  Troop Greetings are grouped together and categorized by state.  Comcast customers can access the greeting just by going to the On Demand library from their remote control, clicking on the "Get Local" section and then selecting "Troop Greetings" and the respective state.  Individual greetings are approximately five to 25 seconds each.

In some areas, Comcast will provide complimentary digital service upgrades for families of service personnel seen in this year's greetings who are Comcast Standard Cable customers.  Upgrades will be offered for the duration of the Troop Greetings On Demand program.  In addition, the general public can view greetings at most Comcast service centers.

About Comcast Corporation

Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA, CMCSK) (www.comcast.com) is one of the nation's leading providers of entertainment, information and communication products and services.  With 22.9 million video customers, 16.7 million high-speed Internet customers, and 8.4 million Comcast Digital Voice customers, Comcast is principally involved in the development, management and operation of cable systems and in the delivery of programming content.

Comcast's content networks and investments include E! Entertainment Television, Style Network, Golf Channel, VERSUS, G4, PBS KIDS Sprout, TV One, 11 regional sports networks operated by Comcast Sports Group and Comcast Interactive Media, which develops and operates Comcast's Internet businesses, including Comcast.net (www.comcast.net).  Comcast also has a majority ownership in Comcast-Spectacor, which owns two professional sports teams, the Philadelphia 76ers NBA basketball team and the Philadelphia Flyers NHL hockey team, and a large, multipurpose arena in Philadelphia, the Wells Fargo Center, and, through Global Spectrum, manages other facilities for sporting events, concerts and other events.

Note:  Troop Greetings screen images are available, and interviews with families can be arranged.  Please contact PR group to coordinate.

SOURCE Comcast Cable