Comcast said its latest Xfinity Watchathon broke another viewing record, as subscribers watched 105 million hours of TV shows and movies during the annual, week-long VOD binge-fest.

By comparison, last year’s Watchathon, the first from Comcast to include Netflix content, saw customers tune in to watch more than 77 million hours of VOD fare.

Comcast’s sixth-annual, VOD-focused Xfinity Watchathon, which took place April 16-22, is used in part to drive interest in TV series ahead of their TV season premieres. This year’s version involved more than 50 networks, as well as access to Netflix original series and subscription VOD services such as Dog TV, Acorn TV and CuriosityStream, as well as two relatively new commercial-free services – AMC Premiere and FX+.

As another new addition, the latest Watchathon offered a subset of programming, including HBO’s Game of Thrones, to Comcast’s internet-only customers using the operator’s Xfinity Stream app for mobile devices and web browsers.

RELATED: Comcast’s Next Watchathon Offers Subset of Programming to Internet-Only Subs.

Among other stats, Comcast said Xfinity Stream app achieved a record during the week from a download perspective, as it averaged about 14 downloads per minute, up about 20% from the week prior.

HBO’s Game of Thrones was the most-watched TV series for the week, followed by ABC’s Roseanne, Showtime’s Homeland and Billions, and HBO’s Westworld, Brynn Lev, VP of editorial and programming at Comcast Cable, noted in this blog post.

Of the SVOD services that were part of Watchathon this year, Acorn TV, AMC Premiere, FX+, Lifetime Movie Club, Stingray Karaoke, Comcast’s own Streampix, and UP Faith and Family were among the most-viewed, Lev added.

RELATED: Acorn TV Nets Comcast Deal

Subs in Boston binged out more than other cities, followed by Chicago, San Francisco, Seattle and Philadelphia. 

Comcast has set April 16-22 for its sixth-annual Xfinity Watchathon and, in a new twist, will offer a subset of programming to internet-only customers, including HBOs Game of Thrones, via the MSO’s Xfinity Stream app for mobile devices and web portal.

This year’s Xfinity Watchathon, a free VOD binge-fest used in part to drive interest in TV series ahead of their season premieres, will offer access to thousands of shows and movies from more than 50 networks, including HBO, Showtime, NBC, and Starz, as well Netflix original series and subscription VOD services that include Dog TV, CuriosityStream and Acorn TV.

RELATED: Acorn TV Nets Comcast Deal

Also part of the mix this year will be two relatively new commercial-free services – AMC Premiere and FX+, Comcast said.

RELATED: Comcast Launches FX+

The offer to internet-only subscribers for a portion of content that is on offer via this year’s Watchathon aims to give them a taste of the VOD fare available through Comcast’s pay TV service and as an apparent enticement to subscribe.

Content available to that internet-only group will include HBO’s Game of Thrones and Westworld; Showtime’s Billions and Homeland; Starz’s Outlander and Power; AMC’s The Terror; Fox’s 9-1-1 and X-Files; Archer (via FX+), and NBC’s AP Bio and Rise.

Comcast noted that the full Showtime catalog will be available on Comcast’s VOD platform and the Xfinity Stream app and portal for a portion of the Watchathon (April 19-22).

The Watchathon web site has also teed up some games related to the initiative, including “TV in Other Worlds,” which tests TV show knowledge by having visitor guess show titles with replaced words.

Last year’s Watchathon, the first from Comcast to include Netflix content, set a record, as customers tuned in to watch more than 77 million hours of VOD fare. Mobile viewing, via the Stream app, rose to 4.5 million hours during last year’s Watchathon.

RELATED: Comcast’s Latest ‘Watchathon Week’ Breaks Another Record

“We love bringing Xfinity Watchathon Week to our customers each year and surprising them with new and unexpected content. This year, we’re really turning up the dial by offering X1 customers a unique opportunity to sample and explore the best programming from dozens of traditional networks and studios, streaming services and emerging SVODs - all aggregated together on the biggest screen in the home,” Daniel Spinosa, vice president, video entertainment services at Comcast Cable, said in a statement. “But we also didn’t want to leave Xfinity Internet customers out of the fun so for the first time we’re inviting them to experience Watchathon Week commitment-free by downloading the Xfinity Stream app or going to the Xfinity Stream portal to get access to a selection of Watchathon Week movies and TV shows on their devices all week long.”

Netflix, for the first time, will be joining the 2017 rendition of Xfinity Watchathon Week, Comcast’s annual, free VOD binge-fest, used in part to drum up interest in TV series ahead of their season premieres. 

The fifth annual Watchathon from Comcast, set run from April 3 to 9, will feature shows from more than 50 networks. The addition of Netflix will provide one-click access to Netflix original series such as House of Cards, Orange Is The New Black, Stranger Things, and The Crown.  Comcast integrated Netflix onto its X1 set-top platform late last year, and is in the process of integrating Sling TV and YouTube. About half of Comcast’s video sub base is on X1.

RELATED: Comcast Sets Another ‘Watchathon Week’Update:Comcast confirmed that all X1 customers, whether they subscribe to Netflix or not, will be able to access Netflix content during the Watchathon promo. 

Examples of other networks and shows to play part include ABC’s Designated Survivor, NBC’s This Is Us, Fox’s 24: Legacy, History’s SIX, Starz’s Black Sails, Syfy’s The Magicians, and Bravo’s Imposters.

Other networks on board to participate include A&E, AMC, Animal Planet, BBCA, BET, Bravo, Cartoon Network, CBS, CMT, CNBC, CNN, Comedy Central, Crackle, The CW, Discovery, Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Disney XD, E!, ESPN, Food Network, FOX, FreeForm, FX, FXX, FYI, GSN, HGTV, HISTORY, ID, IFC, Lifetime, Logo, MLB Network, MTV, National Geographic, OWN, Oxygen, PBS, Science, Showtime, Spike, Sprout, TBS, TLC, TNT, Tru TV, TV Land, USA, VH1, Viceland, We TV and WGNA.

“With more than 50 participating networks and the addition of Netflix, we are thrilled to bring Xfinity TV customers the biggest and best binge watching event for the fifth year in a row,”  Andy Hunter, vice president, programming at Comcast Cable, said in a statement. “The focus of Xfinity Watchathon Week is to provide complete, unlimited access to the best programming and give our customers the ability to sample, binge and explore everything our content partners have to offer.”

For the 2016 iteration, Comcast said customers watched a record 71 million hours of content tied to the Watchathon Week promotion across its set-top, Web and mobile apps platforms. During last year’s Watchathon, HBO’s Game of Thrones was the top TV series viewed, followed by Starz’s The Girlfriend Experience and Outlander; Fox’s Empire, HBO’s Girls; Vikings (via History and Streampix); Cinemax’s Banshee; MTV’s Teen Mom 2;  A&E’s 60 Days In; and Starz’s Black Sails.

Comcast said subs watched 81 million hours of VOD content during the MSO’s latest “Watchathon,” which ran from April 18 – April 24.

TV was the week’s most-watched category, representing 39 million, or 48%, of the total hours viewed.

Update: Comcast announced May 5 that customers watched a record 71 million hours of content tied to the Watchathon Week promotion across its set-top, Web and mobile apps platforms (the aforementioned 81 million included VOD content not specifically linked to the Watchathon).  Comcast also said the 71 million hours was a record, up 10% from last year’s result. Additionally,  8.1 million hours of programming for Watchathon were viewed on Comcast’s Xfinity TV app as well as programmer apps, a 40% jump from last year. 

HBO’s Game of Thrones was the top TV series viewed during the week-long VOD-fest, followed by Starz’s The Girlfriend Experience and Outlander; Fox’s Empire, HBO’s Girls; Vikings (via History and Streampix); Cinemax’s Banshee; MTV’s Teen Mom 2;  A&E’s 60 Days In; and Starz’s Black Sails.

Comcast said the season six premiere of Game of Thrones was the top TV episode viewed on Xfinity On Demand during the Watchathon, followed by Empire (episode 14); VH1’s Love & Hip Hop Atlanta (episode 3), and AMC’s Fear the Walking Dead (episode 3). 

The latest Watchathon, a promo aimed to help viewers catch up on TV series and tune in for the new seasons, provided access to more than 250 shows from 50-plus networks on set-tops as well as the Comcast's authenticated Xfinity TV app and Web site.  

Comcast has set April 18 as the start of its fourth-annual “Xfinity Watchathon Week,” a cross-platform VOD binge-fest aimed to help viewers catch up on TV series and tune in for the new seasons.

The latest tilt will provide access to more than 250 shows from north of 50 networks on set-tops as well as the authenticated Xfinity TV app and Web site, Andy Hunter, vice president of programming at Comcast Cable, said in this blog post.

“Watchathon Week is the perfect opportunity to hunker down and catch up on every episode from all the acclaimed new series you may have missed, including FX’sAmerican Crime Story: The People v O.J. Simpson, NBC’s Chicago Med and USA’s Mr. Robot,” Hunter said.

Last year’s Watchathon Week, which ran from April 6-12, broke on-demand viewing records as customers watched more than 56 million hours of video, up 13% from the previous year’s binge-fest. Comcast’s VOD service for set-tops also, for the first time, exceeded 1 million streams on consecutive days.

Last year, mobile viewing during the week-long event also grew 64%, Hunter noted.

On Tuesday, Comcast also announced it had struck an expanded content licensing deal with The Walt Disney Studios to offer a selection of digital library titles and new releases as they become available via the Xfinity On Demand digital store, an electronic sell-through (EST) platform that lets customers buy and rent titles that can be played back on set-tops and via mobile apps. The new deal covers titles from Disney and other properties such as Walt Disney Animation Studios, Disney•Pixar, Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, Disneynature and Touchstone Pictures.

As a prime example, the new deal gives Comcast subs the ability to buy a digital version of  Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

Tied in, Comcast will also join Disney Movies Anywhere, a cloud-based “digital locker,” as a participating retailer, with an  official launch to be announced at a later date.

Comcast launched its EST service in 2013, and has deals with several other studios, including corporate cousin NBCUniversal, Fox, Lionsgate, Paramount, Sony Pictures and Warner Bros.

Comcast said its third annual Xfinity Watchathon Week –  a cross-platform VOD binge-fest held April 6-12 --  broke more records as customers gobbled down 56 million hours of video, up 13% from last year’s Watchathon.

For the first time, Xfinity On Demand, Comcast’s VOD service for set-tops, exceeded 1 million streams on consecutive days – on Friday (April 10) and Saturday (April 11) – according to this blog post from Andy Hunter, vice president of programming at Comcast Cable.

The event also saw a boost in TV Everywhere usage. Per Hunter, Comcast subs tapped Xfinity TV Go, the MSO’s TVE app for mobile devices, and authenticated on programmer-run TVE apps to watch more than 3 million hours of comedies, dramas and reality TV during Watchathon Week. That was a 64% increase from last year’s tilt.

HBO’s Game of Thrones was the most-viewed show during this year’s event, with the season five premiere tallying 3.2 million views across the MSO’s Xfinity TV platforms within the first three days. The next most-watched shows were Outlander (Starz), Shameless (Showtime), Empire (Fox), and The Royals (E!).  

Chicago, Boston and Comcast’s hometown of Philadelphia were the MSO’s top viewing cities during the week-long event.

“For the first time, time-shifted viewing across TV Everywhere platforms kept pace with VOD and DVR consumption—with 653,000 on Xfinity On Demand, 699,000 on the DVR, and 660,000 on Xfinity TV Go and HBO GO—confirming that the viewing preferences of our customers continue to evolve,” Hunter wrote, noting that Comcast is planning to do bring Watchathon Week back for a fourth-consecutive year in 2016. 

Comcast on Monday began its third annual “Xfinity Watchathon Week,” offering Xfinity customers free access to online and on-air on demand content, billing it in a blog post as one more reason for the government to approve its proposed merger with Time Warner Cable.

Comcast executive vice president and general manager of video services Matt Strauss blogged that one of the big consumer benefits of the deal is extending that on demand content to TWC systems in big ticket markets, including the first- and second-largest TV markets, New York and Los Angeles .

"Watchathon Week is one of the best examples to showcase the breadth and depth of Comcast’s commitment to video on demand (VOD) and TV Everywhere," said Strauss. "We look forward to more than doubling the on demand programming choices for TWC customers and bringing the future of TV to TWC markets once our transaction closes."

The FCC and the Justice Department have yet to say whether they will allow the merger, and Wall Street deal watchers have decreased their odds on its approval. They still favor its eventual approval, though likely with major conditions.

Aiming to help viewers catch up on TV series on VOD while also juicing up ratings for the new TV season, Comcast said its third-annual “Xfinity Watchathon Week” will run April 6-12, and offer access to 215 shows across more than 40 premium, cable and broadcast channels.

Comcast is running the promo across its platforms, including set-top VOD, at Xfinity.com/TV and its Xfinity TV Go app, with content available in “virtually all cases…regardless of which video subscription tier the customer is subscribed to.”

In addition to giving viewers a chance to binge on shows such as American Crime, CSI: Cyber, Dig, Empire, Finding Carter, The Affair, Black Sails, and Game of Thrones, this year’s version will also feature content for Latino customers with access to shows from HBO Latino, UniMás, and Telemundo. Other programmers that will participate in Comcast’s upcoming Watchathon include Cinemax, Encore, HBO, Showtime, Starz, A&E, AMC, BBC America, Bravo, Comedy Central, Discovery, DIY Network, E!, El Rey Network, Esquire Network, FX, FXX, History, Lifetime, MTV, National Geographic Channel,  OWN, Oxygen, Pivot, Pop, Spike, Syfy, TBS, TNT, TruTV, TV Land, VH1 and USA Network; and broadcast networks: ABC, CBS, The CW, FOX, Galavisión, NBC, NBC Universo, and PBS.

Comcast is also backing the spring VOD-fest with a sweepstakes that will offer registrants the chance to win a $20,000 grand prize, show-themed vacations (including a GoT-themes trip to Northern Ireland, and an Outlander-themed getaway  to Scotland), and daily giveaway of a “Binge Box” containing a mini tablet, headphones, snacks, and other items. Comcast will also push the week-long viewing event on social networks, including Facebook, on Twitter (using the #Watchathon hashtag) via its @Xfinity and @Comcast handles.

Last year’s Comcast Watchathon Week, which featured more than 5,000 episodes from 48 TV channels and north of 130 TV series, broke several VOD records for the MSO, generating 61 million views and 50 million hours of TV bingeing. The tilt also helped to drive live ratings for shows such as GoT, which got a 17% boost in Comcast homes versus non-Comcast homes in the U.S.

“Xfinity On Demand has become the go-to destination for catching up and staying current on all of the programming available today. Watchathon enables us to take that to the next level by unlocking the biggest and best TV content of the year for the ultimate TV binge week,” Comcast Cable VP of programming Andy Hunter said in a statement.