$72B for a decade of TV rights in pro sports, paid for by half your cable bill [Comcast Roundup]

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• About half of cable-TV bills go to sports [Philadelphia Inquirer] “Threatened by Internet streaming services and a fragmenting TV audience, Comcast/NBC, ESPN, Fox Sports, Turner, and CBS have agreed over the last 20 months to spend $72 billion for the TV rights to professional, Olympic, and college sports well into the next decade. Billions of additional dollars will be paid for sports rights on about 50 regional cable networks, such as Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia, and college championship bowl games.”
• Comcast Xfinity app now lets you download movies for offline viewing [CNET]
• With ‘Defiance,’ Comcast’s Syfy Bets $100M On Convergence Of TV And Videogames [Forbes]
• Comcast’s Roberts Among Execs Talking Budget With President [Broadcasting & Cable] “Comcast chairman Brian Roberts is one of the business leaders meeting with President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden Wednesday to talk about balancing economic growth and reducing the deficit, both keys to the ongoing fiscal cliff negotiations between Congress and the White House.”