Canada’s Rogers Licenses More Comcast Tech, Including a ‘New Device Powered by Entertainment OS’

 Rogers Communications.
Rogers Communications.

Canada’s Rogers Communications, which has licensed Comcast’s X1 video platform technology since 2016, announced Wednesday that it has signed a 10-year agreement with the American cable giant to use a lot more of its tech.

The bounty will include what Rogers describes as a “new device powered by Entertainment OS,” which on the surface sounds like Xumo Stream Box, the streaming gadget jointly launched last year by Comcast and Charter Communications that runs the former’s TVOS.

So it is the Xumo Stream Box, which is also being deployed by Cox Communications and Mediacom Communications, right?

A Rogers rep told us that “commercial details” about the video product “will be announced later this year.”

Meanwhile, Rogers said it's also licensing Comcast’s “10G” wireline internet gateway, as well as its Storm-Ready WiFi product, a gateway introduced last summer that includes backup battery power and a system for switching from wireline to cellular internet connectivity.

Rogers said it’s also licensing various Xfinity-branded home security tech from Comcast.

“Our partnership with Comcast builds on our legacy of bringing Canadians the best networks, entertainment and services in the world,” Tony Staffieri, president and CEO of Rogers Communications, said in a statement. “Canadians want to be connected to the best entertainment, anywhere, without interruption and we’re proud to partner with Comcast to make this a reality.”

Rogers is the largest wireless company in Canada, with 11.6 million customers at the end of 2023. But it’s also still one of the country’s largest cable companies, with 4.2 million “retail internet” users and 2.25 million remaining linear video subscribers