Comcast today announced a new set of security camera features designed to help consumers better spot package theft “Grinches” this holiday season, including the ability to filter motion-triggered activity by people or vehicles. The company also released results from a new nationwide survey around Americans’ growing concerns about package theft.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20181115005438/en/

Comcast announces new Artificial Intelligence-powered security camera features and results of a new  ...

Comcast announces new Artificial Intelligence-powered security camera features and results of a new survey on package theft just in time for the holiday shopping season. (Graphic: Business Wire)

Last year, UPS delivered more than 750 million packages between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve, and 2018 online sales are expected to exceed last year’s numbers. According to the new survey findings, commissioned by Comcast and conducted by Wakefield Research, nearly one in four people report being a victim of package theft and nearly half know someone who has had a package stolen. The data is even higher among Millennials, with one in three having had a package stolen and nearly 60 percent knowing someone who has been a victim.

“Home security cameras, when integrated with our other Xfinity services, offer great peace of mind so our customers can check-in on their home from anywhere, anytime,” said Eric Schaefer, General Manager and Senior Vice President of Xfinity Services. “We make it easy, for instance, for a parent to check their home camera in real time to make sure their child got off the bus or check to see if a package has arrived.”

The Comcast survey also found:

  • 72% of Americans who live in a house or townhome take security measures to avoid having a package stolen, including having it delivered to a friend, family member or neighbor’s home (33%), having it held at the shipping center (23%), canceling plans to wait for the package (21%), shipping it to work (21%), and staying home from work (22%).
  • While nearly three in four (74%) of Americans believe having a visible home security camera is effective at preventing home package theft, only 31% actually have one.
  • Of those who have a home security camera, 74% say they monitor their footage more often during the holidays.

Evy Poumpouras, security expert and former secret service special agent, said, “More packages will arrive on people’s doorsteps over the next few weeks than any other time of year and theft has become an increasing concern among homeowners. There are simple and easy steps consumers can take to protect themselves, from signing up for real time package tracking alerts to installing a home security camera to keep an eye on deliveries when they’re not home.”

Comcast’s Xfinity customers who purchase the Xfinity indoor + outdoor camera and add 24/7 video recording will have access to up to 10 days of video history. The 24/7 video recording service uses artificial intelligence (AI) technology to help zoom in on the actual activity taking place and bookmarks those events for faster viewing. Xfinity’s AI technology also offers the ability to filter on people or vehicles making the events even more meaningful, so users can spend less time searching and more time watching.

To delight Xfinity Home customers and make a connection to a beloved holiday thief, The Grinch, Comcast’s engineers added a few Easter Egg voice commands where Xfinity Home customers can say “Xfinity Home, find the Grinch” into the X1 voice remote to access still images from their home security camera on the television or “Xfinity Home, the Grinch is here” to turn their lights green.

Illumination and Universal Pictures, a part of the Comcast family, just released The Grinch, based on Dr. Seuss’ beloved holiday classic. The Grinch is featured in three Xfinity ads, including one attempting to steal packages inside an Xfinity Home and caught on the camera while setting off the window sensors.

About the Survey

The survey was conducted by Wakefield Research among 1,000 U.S. adults, ages 18+, who live in a house or townhome, between October 26 and November 2, 2018, using an email invitation and an online survey. Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results. For the interviews conducted in this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 3.1 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.

About Comcast

Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is a global media and technology company with three primary businesses: Comcast Cable, NBCUniversal, and Sky. Comcast Cable is one of the United States’ largest video, high-speed internet, and phone providers to residential customers under the Xfinity brand, and also provides these services to businesses. It also provides wireless and security and automation services to residential customers under the Xfinity brand. NBCUniversal is global and operates news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures, and Universal Parks and Resorts. Sky is one of Europe's leading media and entertainment companies, connecting customers to a broad range of video content through its pay television services. It also provides communications services, including residential high-speed internet, phone, and wireless services. Sky operates the Sky News broadcast network and sports and entertainment networks, produces original content, and has exclusive content rights. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.