For the first time, Notre Dame students living on campus this year will have access to Xfinity’s streaming service. This service gives students a multitude of options for viewing entertainment content, Bill Mountford, the manager of Telephony Services at the Office of Information Technologies (OIT), said in an email.
“Xfinity on Campus (XOC) allows you to stream live TV, movies, sports events and more on any device you register anywhere on campus,” Mountford said.
Mountford said this is a significant addition to the old service, which was much more limited.
“The standard package was the only service available to students until this academic year,” he said.
The service gives students access to more content than the previous standard package, Mountford said, with “more channels and HD programming.” The new system also supports more mediums through which to interact with this content.
“XOC runs over the campus data network so students can watch programs on a desktop computer, as well as on wireless and mobile devices,” he said.
Mountford said he believes this system is a better fit for the habits of a modern college student than past student TV packages.
“Comcast calls this service the ‘TV everywhere app’ and we believe it is consistent with evolving student-usage patterns,” he said. “This means watching programs when you can, where you can and on any device.”
One of the best parts of this package improvement is students will only pay if they choose to upgrade their package even further.
“There is no cost for this service to students,” Mountford said. “This service was part of the Comcast contract that was paid for by the University. If you wish to upgrade the current XOC service to receive additional programming such as on demand movies, there is an additional cost that you would pay directly to Comcast.”
As for how to access the service, Mountford said Xfinity has both a mobile app and web browser option through which students can view content.
“For a mobile device, a student needs to download the Xfinity TV app,” he said. “You can download the app through the App Store or Google Play. The service can also be accessed through a web browser by going to xfinityoncampus.com.”
Across the country, Mountford said XOC is starting to become a staple of many college campuses.
“Notre Dame is the 59th school in the U.S. to roll out the [XOC] streaming service,” Mountford said.
Considering the service is new and not very well known, it is still taking time to catch the attention of the student body.
“I didn’t realize that Xfinity is a TV provider for Notre Dame or that they offer a streaming service,” Jessica Hardey, a sophomore, said in a text message.
“I have no idea about the service or how to use it,” Jarod Luedecker, a sophomore, said. “But it sounds pretty cool.”
As for the future, Mountford said OIT hopes to continue to keep up with modern technology in order to provide students the best and most accessible entertainment experiences possible. OIT intends to re-evaluate the situation in three years when Notre Dame’s contract with Xfinity-provider Comcast is up.
“Though there is a trend to move to wireless connections, it’s too early to determine if that will be the direction we would choose to move at that time,” Mountford said.
