As cable companies try to differentiate themselves in a competitive market, Comcast thinks its secret weapon is an app that lets it talk directly to consumers

Brian L. Roberts, chief executive officer of Comcast Corporation, attends the annual Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference, July 5, 2016 in Sun Valley, Idaho. Every July, some of the world's most wealthy and powerful businesspeople from the media, finance, technology and political spheres converge at the Sun Valley Resort for the exclusive weeklong conference.

Comcast is making Xfinity XFi its biggest priority this year.
XFi is a mobile app that lets Comcast customers set up wifi networks, troubleshoot network issues, and see what devices are connected to their networks.
The company believes having a product that promotes engagement with consumers will keep them subscribing.

Cable companies want to differentiate themselves in a broadband market rife with competition.

To set itself apart from competitors, Comcast is prioritizing Xfinity XFi this year, Comcast SVP Fraser Stirling told Business Insider.

XFi is a mobile app that lets Comcast customers set up wifi networks, troubleshoot network issues, see what devices are connected to their networks, and block or pause connected devices. It displays all the devices in a household that are connected and the network activity on all of them.

Comcast is working to engage more deeply with customers through xFi, and sees it as a one-stop shop for everything from alerts to service broadband disruptions in the home to informing customers when a credit card is expiring. The next step will be giving customers more information about their network's speed and capacity.

The company hopes all this will strengthen its relationship with customers and protect against churn.

Comcast's share of the broadband market has grown. In the fourth quarter alone, Comcast added 351,000 broadband subscribers, a 5.2% year-over-year increase. Its closest cable competitor, Charter, added 289,000 and AT&T lost 32,000.

In the first quarter of this year, the company plans to launch Xfinity Assistant, an AI-powered assistant that will allow users of the app to troubleshoot issues and schedule service appointments using voice commands.

Comcast also uses xFi to educate customers about technology. It tells people things like how many devices using hundreds of megabits of speed they can connect on a single network, which Stirling said has led to more informed and satisfied users.

Differentiating their broadband product is important to telecom companies as they try to retain customers. That Comcast, the largest pay-TV provider in the US, has more broadband customers than video customers shows how vital broadband service is to the company as traditional linear TV subscribers decline.

Stirling said British broadcaster Sky, which was recently acquired by Comcast, is exploring how to deploy xFi across Europe.

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