Comcast: Our Netflix competitor is too unpopular to survive on its own

Remember Comcast's Streampix service?

Launched in February 2012, it was created to help Comcast compete against streaming video services such as Netflix. But it never caught on -- and thus regulators examining the Comcast/Time Warner Cable merger should reject claims that Comcast has an incentive to discriminate against online video distributors [OVDs] like Netflix, Comcast told the Federal Communications Commission. The tidbit was buried in Comcast's 324-page filing with the FCC. Comcast still offers Streampix as a $5-per-month add-on to its Xfinity TV service but has given up on making it a standalone offering. The Streampix mobile app is still available on Apple and Android devices but will eventually be "decommissioned."