Charter to offer NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming service at no extra charge

Charter Communications said it will offer NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming service to some customers at no extra cost from next year under a new multi-year deal, in a move to boost the cable and broadband firm’s user base.

The deal also includes renewal of Comcast-owned NBCUniversal’s full portfolio of networks including broadcast, entertainment and sports, among others, the companies said on Wednesday, without disclosing the financial terms.

Cable TV operators are increasingly bundling streaming services with their offerings to hold on to their subscriber base.

The deal will offer customers of Charter’s cable TV plan Spectrum TV Select, which already includes streaming platforms such as Disney+, ESPN+ and Paramount+, access ad-supported Peacock streaming service.

Stamford, Connecticut-based Charter has 13.31 million total video customers as of June 30.

Charter had renewed a similar deal with Warner Bros Discovery in September, adding Max and Discovery+ streaming services to its package at no additional charge.

“We now have completed deals with every major programmer to create better flexibility and greater value to our customers by including DTC streaming apps with their Spectrum TV service, at no extra cost,” Tom Montemagno, Charter’s executive vice president of programming acquisition, said on Wednesday.

Charter had won some concessions from Walt Disney last year as it negotiated for a smaller package of programming and gained rights to distribute Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ to its Spectrum TV customers. Reuters