After months of rumors that Netflix wanted to get its service on company-issued cable boxes in the U.S., it has finally happened. Netflix will be available on TiVO DVRs from regional cable providers Atlantic Broadband, Grande Communications, and RCN.
Hell hasn’t frozen over—that would be a Comcast deal—but it’s certainly getting frosty.
Netflix will be available from the cable providers starting Monday, April 28, although specific roll out schedules may vary.
The new deal means that Netflix will be available for some U.S. cable customers on the same box they use to watch TV and access other cable services. “Now, watching Netflix is as easy as changing the channel,” Atlantic Broadband chief marketing and strategy officer, David Isenberg said in a statement announcing the deal.
Netflix has long been assumed to be the natural enemy of cable providers, because it provides an on-demand alternative to cable’s core business.
Netflix is also a vocal critic of cable company practices, most recently on Thursday, when Netflix accused Comcast of double-dipping thanks to the recent toll deal between the two companies. On Thursday, Netflix also publicly opposed Comcast’s proposed acquisition of Time Warner.
Despite Netflix’s ire for some members of the cable industry, many people use Netflix and at least some cable companies are trying to make that service more convenient for their customers.
Netflix landing on U.S. TiVo’s follows a similar deal with UK cable provider Virgin Media last September. The three U.S. regional cable carriers won’t charge anything extra for the right to access Netflix, but as usual, you will need a Netflix subscription to access the service on cable company TiVo’s.