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Comcast reveals Now TV, a cable-lite streaming package for $20 a month

Comcast reveals Now TV, a cable-lite streaming package for $20 a month

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Xfinity customers will soon be able to buy a cable-ish package.

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A promotional image for Now TV.
A promotional image for Now TV.
Image: Comcast

On Tuesday, Comcast announced Now TV, a new $20 per month cable-ish streaming service for Xfinity internet customers that includes access to more than 40 live channels, over 20 FAST services, and a subscription to Peacock Premium. It will be launching in the “coming weeks,” according to a press release.

The “Now TV Live” offerings include a lot of channels you might be familiar with from a cable package — though notably, some of the most popular cable channels, including CNN, ESPN, and TBS, won’t be part of the package. Per Comcast’s press release, you’ll be able to access the following channels from the Xfinity Stream app:

A&E, Afro​, AMC​, Animal Planet​, BBC America, BBC News, Comedy.TV​, Cooking, Crime + Investigation, Discovery, Discovery Life, Food Network, FYI, Great American Family, Great American Living, Get TV, Game Show Network, Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Drama, Hallmark Movies & Mysteries, HGTV​, The HISTORY Channel, Investigation Discovery, IFC, Justice Central, Lifetime, Lifetime Movie Network, Magnolia Network, Military History, MotorTrend​ Network, OWN​, Pursuit, Recipe.TV​, Science Channel, Sony Movies, Sundance TV, TLC, Travel Channel, Vice, WEtv and Weather Channel

As for the FAST (free ad-supported streaming television) services, here’s what will be included:

NBC News NOW, Sky News​​ and the following genre-based channels from Xumo Play: Action Movies, Black Cinema, Bollywood & Indian Cinema, Comedy Movies, Comedy TV, Crime TV, Documentaries, Drama & Action TV, Family Movies, Food TV, Movies, Game Shows, Her Movies, Horror & Thriller, Kids TV, Reality TV, Sci-Fi & Fantasy Movies, Travel & Lifestyle TV and Westerns

And with Peacock Premium, you’ll get access to the shows available on that streaming service, including this year’s Poker Face and Mrs. Davis, some sports events, and more.

The all-in-one Now TV streaming package seems ideal for anyone who wants access to a small set of cable TV channels but doesn’t want the much pricier subscriptions offered by Hulu with Live TV, FuboTV, and Sling TV. The added $4.99 per month Premium Peacock subscription is a nice perk, too, especially since Comcast is taking away free subscriptions for Xfinity subscribers next month.

In the UK and other European countries, Comcast-owned Sky Group has already been using the Now TV brand name. While Comcast announced earlier this year that it would launch a “global user interface for Sky Glass, X1, Flex, Xumo, and our US and international partners,” the company has confirmed that this isn’t it.

In addition to owning NBC Peacock, Comcast already has a FAST service it acquired called Xumo Play. Through a joint venture with Charter, Comcast plans on building a streaming hardware ecosystem surrounding the service to compete with Roku, which includes new Xumo-branded TVs and set-top boxes.

Disclosure: Comcast is an investor in Vox Media, The Verge’s parent company.