Xfinity Races Into NASCAR With New Features
By Edward Cardenas
SOUTHFIELD (CBS Detroit) - The green flag drops this weekend on a new season of racing for NASCAR, and a new sponsorship for the racing series that comes with a number of technological advancements for fans.
Comcast's XFINITY brand is the entitlement sponsors NASCAR's number two series, which was previously known as the Nationwide Series.
In addition to the sponsorship, XFINITY is adding new features to the X1 Entertainment Operating System for racing fans.
New NASCAR content has been added to the Xfinity On Demand platform, and the X1 Sports App has been expanded to include scheduling information for the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series, NASCAR XFINITY Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series.
"We're bringing technology together with sports and entertainment experiences, and nowhere more so than with NASCAR," said Matt Lederer, senior director of Sports Marketing for Comcast, in a release. "By adding racing features, we hope to bring the unbridled excitement of NASCAR racing to even more of our customers."
The NASCAR XFINITY Series starts on Saturday with the running of the Alert Today Florida 300 at Daytona International Speedway. This is the first race in the 10-year agreement between Comcast and NASCAR first announced in Sept. 2014.
XFINITY X1 customers will be able to access the X1 Sports app which gives viewers the opportunity to tune directly to network race broadcasts, or have the option to set a recording for later viewing. In the future, NASCAR and Comcast will reportedly work together on future enhancements of the app that may include content such as race-specific data including leaderboards, live news feed and schedules.
Race fans can prepare for Sunday's Daytona 500 with highlights of the "10 most exciting Daytona 500" of all time through Xfinity On Demand, and during the season, extra content including race highlights, upcoming race previews and garage cams will be added.
"Our partnership with Comcast is infusing a lot of energy into the sport and the unique capabilities they bring with one-of-a-kind products like the X1 platform will contribute to an already vibrant culture of innovation within the NASCAR ecosystem," said Brent Dewar, NASCAR Chief Operating Officer, in a release. "This is a prime example of how NASCAR is working closely with its partners to make the entire NASCAR experience better for the fans through technology."
