Comcast users to get multiviews on screen

Cable TV subscribers in Spokane may do less channel surfing next month when they start getting access to a new on-screen guide offering previews of multiple channels.

Comcast Corp.’s guide, which begins going online locally June 5, will replace set-top software by Microsoft statewide, bringing Comcast’s digital cable customers in Washington into line with those elsewhere.

Switching to Comcast Central will enable the cable company to upgrade its technology nationwide, paving the way for potential features, such as on-TV caller ID or remote Internet access to digital video recorders, said Comcast spokesman Walter Neary.

“There’s a lot of similarities in how the guide feels and functions,” Neary said. “The immediate difference that most people will see right away is that there will be some menus where you can watch multiple channels at once.”

The change affects the software found on users’ set-top digital cable boxes. Software by GuideWorks, a joint venture by Philadelphia-based Comcast and Gemstar-TV Guide International Inc., will replace the current Microsoft TV Foundation Edition guide.

“It should be a fairly painless experience to the consumer,” said Ed Graczyk, Microsoft TV marketing director.

The new interface will allow users to preview as many as six channels simultaneously. The pre-programmed previews are grouped into three categories: sports, news and children’s programming. To find other channels, subscribers will need to use a standard TV grid.

Under the new system, consumers may continue using On Demand and digital video recording services, according to a Comcast news release. DVR recordings and schedules, and most current guide settings, should automatically transfer to the new software, according to the release.

Spokane will be the state’s first area to switch, and other areas will follow over the summer, Neary said.

Comcast and Microsoft announced a deal in 2004 for the Microsoft set-top software, Graczyk said.

The two companies have a history dating to the mid-1990s. Microsoft invested $1 billion in Comcast in 1997, according to the cable company.

“Frankly, there’s a physical proximity that makes a lot of sense,” Neary said. He said he didn’t know when Comcast decided to switch.

“It wasn’t abrupt,” he said. “It’s been something that’s been discussed as a possibility for many months.”

The change will have “no material impact” on Microsoft, and the corporation will focus on developing next-generation Internet Protocol television, Graczyk said. Foundation Edition remains the market leader in Latin America, he said.

Subscribers should receive letters about the switch about a week before it happens, Neary said.

“While we think this is going to look really good, we think people will have a high level of interest,” he said.

Customers experiencing problems with either interface may call 1-800-COMCAST for technical support.