If your idea of a good time is pigging out on an all-you-can eat buffet of free TV and movie fare, then you're in luck—at least if you subscribe to TV service from Comcast or Verizon. Both companies are offering free, weeklong video-on-demand marathons to let customers know they can binge-watch favorite shows and movies, just like they do on Amazon Prime and Netflix.
First up is Comcast's Xfinity Watchathon Week (March 31-April 6), which offers subscribers free access to full seasons of TV shows from more than 75 series using Comcast's Xfinity On Demand VOD service, its TV Go App for tablets and smart phones, or at www.xfinity.com/TV. Available shows includes HBO's "Game of Thrones" and "Girls," Showtime's "Californication," Starz's "Black Sails," and AMC's "The Walking Dead." There are also network shows including ABC's "Grey’s Anatomy," CBS' "The Good Wife," Fox's "The Mindy Project," and PBS' "Downton Abbey."
This is the second year that Comcast is offering a spring VOD marathon, which it followed last fall with the 12-day Xfinity Fall TV Fest promotion that let subscribers use VOD to get a sneak peek at several new shows.
Verizon's Free On Demand Marathon (April 1-7) includes free access to more than 2,300 movies and over 90 full TV seasons. Among the movie highlights: The Great Gatsby, Hangover 3, The Heat, The Hobbit, and World War Z.
Those more interested in TV fare can choose among dozens of full-series TV shows from the major broadcast networks, including ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC, plus shows from AMC, Food Network, FX, SyFy, and TLC. The FiOS marathon also coincides with HBO's free preview that starts on April 4, so viewers can also watch original series such as "Game of Thrones," "True Detective," and "Girls," as well as shows and movies from Cinemax and Starz.
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Comcast and Verizon say that these promotions help to increase awareness of on-demand video services and expose more customers to TV Everywhere apps, which let you watch shows that are part of your programming package on tablets and smart phones, sometimes even outside the home. These efforts come as the latest estimates from market research firm SNL Kagan show that cable lost nearly 2 million subscribers last year, while telco and satellite TV service had marginal subscriber gains.
—James K. Willcox
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