• by Wayne Friedman , December 15, 2009

Comcast's highly anticipated -- and controversial -- service for TV viewers to watch TV shows on the Internet has launched nationwide -- under the new brand name Fancast Xfinity TV.

Comcast, the biggest U.S. cable TV operator, says the new service will allow any customer to watch TV programming on the site as long as they are "a Comcast customer with the digital cable and Internet subscription." Comcast says they can go to www.comcast.net or www.fancast.com to sign up.

Fancast has been a free, ad-supported video Web site that Comcast operates, running some 12,000 hours of programming from broadcast and cable networks as well as clips and other content.

Fancast Xfinity morphs from Comcast's workman-like brand name, On Demand Online. Time Warner Cable has a similar effort looking to launch, under its 'TV Everywhere' banner. Comcast says Xfinity allows cable video subscribers to watch video online that might not otherwise be available.

Comcast and other cable operators feel they are being threatened by Internet users increasingly turning online to view TV programming on free, ad-supported sites -- such as Hulu.com -- and at the same time, turning away from paying for cable TV subscriptions. (Comcast just signed an agreement to become a major owner of NBC Universal, which owns one-third of Hulu.com).

Many are looking to start up new Internet digital video sites that protect their existing traditional cable subscription businesses. The plan is to make non-cable customers pay when video is viewed on Internet sites -- programs that cable operators have agreements with from cable and broadcast networks.

Some of Comcast's network partners in Xfinity include A&E, AMC, CBS, Discovery, History, TLC and TNT.

While Comcast Xfinity is now available nationwide, the site is still in beta at the moment. One area that Comcast has been testing has been increasing the commercial load of TV shows to levels seen on traditional TV.

While shows on Hulu.com, ABC.com, and others offer up four or so 15-second or 30-second commercials for an entire show, Comcast has been experimenting with running traditional television commercial loads, which can run as high as 20 thirty-second commercials per hour-long show.