Innovating the Customer Experience from Pipeline to Platform

- ClientComcast
- IndustryMedia & Publishing · Media & Entertainment · Telecomm · Tech
- ServicesCustomer Experience · Branding · Marketing
- CapabilitiesCustomer Experience · Content strategy
Transforming Comcast into a Content Experience Leader
Comcast, the Philadelphia-based multimedia giant, was once primarily perceived as a public utility: a service provider whose pipelines sent content instead of water or gas. Since then, America’s biggest media company—as well as the nation’s largest cable operator, Internet service provider, and third-largest phone company—has undergone a radical shift. On the cusp of a media and technological revolution, Comcast is not simply providing content for customers; it is a company that delivers and facilitates content experiences. Code and Theory collaborated with Comcast through every step of this evolution. From interface design to product creation, Code and Theory has applied its vision as a content expert to establish simple and consistent touchpoints of engagement for Comcast customers—bringing innovation and cohesion to multiple devices, platforms, and products.
Key Takeaways
Enhancing cross-platform engagement
Enabling Comcast to unify content management across devices
Empowering customers to personalize and manage their content experiences
Streamlining user interactions for improved satisfaction
Managing Customer Experiences Across Platforms
In 2002, we worked with Comcast to create an experience that existed on one screen, in a closed environment, and with devices that had a single-use. As Internet capability and cloud software developed, the range of products expanded to multi-platform and multi-device capabilities, and we broadened and integrated the control of experience from screen to product to packaging. This growth is not complete, and Comcast with Code and Theory are working to extend the reach of the Comcast experience to the environment in which the experience takes place. Platforms aren’t just screens on devices; they are any place where experiences can be customized to create a better life for the customer, whether on a phone, in a living room or throughout a house. Comcast sees design solutions across these platforms, and new “smart home” controls will allow users to manage everything from monitoring home lighting and security to programming devices like thermostats and coffee pots.
Designing Future-Ready Experiences
Comcast is looking to the future of experience. The next generation of customers will engage with systems that are smarter, faster, more personalized, and accessible across platforms that are still being developed. Comcast and Code and Theory are designing innovations that will not only help customers manage their experiences with the Comcast brand but also help customers to define the brand for themselves.
“If you don't have your products on every platform, you're missing a whole generation. Brian Roberts, Comcast CEO”
Managing Customer Expectations and Education
In its decade-long relationship with Code and Theory, Comcast has seen the media industry grow from a one-screen interaction to a multi-platform, multi-screen immersive consumer relationship. The growth is staggering, and Code and Theory has enabled Comcast to pivot with the changes as an industry leader and provide customers with the tools to manage their content experiences. TV once commanded our full attention, providing a direct, one-way communication of content: Comcast ensured compelling programming was available, and audiences watched it. As broadband access turned personal computers into viable points of engagement, the one-screen format evolved into a second-screen experience—Comcast consumers could augment live television with show information and social sharing platforms. Second screen engagement was only the beginning: mobile device proliferation made content portable and interactive across multiple screens. Code and Theory helped Comcast break down the walls between consumer and content to make all potential video streams— traditional live television, web-based video, video on demand, or time-shifting DVR—available simultaneously and sequentially between screens.
A Multi-Platform World
"We live in a multi-platform world and need consistency across screens; different device screens are no longer used for different situations. Code and Theory designed Comcast’s digital interface to unify search for real-time, on-demand, streaming, and DVR video across devices, while also enhancing platform integration, social sharing capabilities, and personalized recommendations. These convergent platform interfaces allow Comcast customers to manage content experiences and organize their lives as they move between screens to engage with the world. Code and Theory saw Comcast’s content management strategy beyond just controlling content across screens; a screen is not just a screen, it’s a digital canvas for physical interaction. The interplay between content and products that manipulate the content, such as remote controls and set-top boxes, are critical to an enriching consumer experience.
“If you don't have your products on every platform, you're missing a whole generation.”
What We Did
Brand Identity
Customer Experience
Platform Integration
Personalization
Enhancing the Customer Experience through Design
The integration of physical products with digital interfaces has redefined how consumers engage with Comcast. By simplifying hardware and reducing complexity, Code and Theory has transformed the user experience, moving away from outdated remote controls to intuitive, tablet-like on-screen guides. This seamless connection between devices enhances user interaction with content, making it more accessible and enjoyable.
The new set-top box, designed to complement these interfaces, not only stores recorded programs in the cloud but also minimizes power consumption. This holistic approach to design reinforces Comcast's brand identity while guiding customers toward a more integrated digital experience.
Let’s get to work. Start a conversation.
newbiz@codeandtheory.comCode and Theory is a proud member of Stagwell Group. Stagwell is the challenger network built to transform marketing. We deliver scaled creative performance for the world’s most ambitious brands, connecting culture-moving creativity with leading-edge technology to harmonize the art and science of marketing. Led by entrepreneurs, our 13,000+ specialists in 34+ countries are unified under a single purpose: to drive effectiveness and improve business results for their clients. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com
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