Comcast! You’ve got some Xplainin’ to do!

Based in Philadelphia, with approximately 100,000 employees worldwide, Comcast is the largest provider of cable, internet and digital phone in the United States with 23.6 million, 15.9 million, and 7.6 million customers respectively. To add to its media influence, this past December, Comcast became the majority owner of NBC Universal with a 51% stake in the company in partnership with GE, who owns the other 49%. Comcast also owns television networks like E! Entertainment, the Golf Channel and Sprouts. With a diversifying range of businesses, the parent company, Comcast Corporation announced last week that it would rebrand its consumer services — cable, internet, and digital phone — to XFINITY. All caps. The three services will now be called XFINITY TV, XFINITY Voice and XFINITY Internet, and will begin to be rolled out this week in eleven markets, with the name and identity appearing in advertising, uniforms, trucks and on the cable user interface.

The modest image adorning the sole page xfinity.com.

Surprisingly, there was no press release with a rationalization for the name or any explanations of how the logo represents cutting edge technology and XFINITY’s commitment to its customers. Or whatever. The new name feels at the same time pompous and clichéd — as if there is no brighter horizon than the infinity of XFINITY but, really, nothing is as depressing as a badly placed “X,” a gesture better reserved for extreme games and products, for bad dot-com era start-ups and for strip-club dancers not named Destiny. It might sound more fun than “Comcast” but at least Comcast sounds like a real company with almost fifty years of experience.

The logo is nearly decent once you accept the name, although it falls prey to a number of clichés as well. First there is the lowercase approach which, if it weren’t for the obligation to write it in text as XFINITY, it wouldn’t be as obnoxious but having that extreme difference will only lead to confusion. Then there is the omission of the tittles, the dots of the “i,” that does create a cleaner wordmark but I believe lowercase “i”s are meant to live in harmony with their dots be it in this lifetime or in infinity. There is a nice gesture when the “f” and “t” join with the “x” and “y” and their crossbars are edged at the same angle as the diagonal characters. But this nice move is offset by too much space between the rest of the letters — “xf” and “ty” become tightly kerned, and the rest is too spacious. When you think about it, this identity could have been more xtremely designed, and it’s surprising that there was so much restraint shown, so let’s appreciate that, because there isn’t much else.

Thanks to Adam Gilson for first tip. Title apologies to Ricky Ricardo.

John McCollum’s comment is:

A stupid name with a vapid logo. With that name, they could have at the very least hired someone like John Langdon to do a cool ambigram. But even that couldn’t have completely saved this bag of clichés. Ick.

On Feb.08.2010 at 06:45 AM

buruno’s comment is:

I think you summed it up very well, Armin. The best thing about this logo is that it could be way worse.

And, again, another missed ligature..

On Feb.08.2010 at 07:14 AM

Zack Bennett’s comment is:

Exxon called… would like its logo back.

On Feb.08.2010 at 07:25 AM

Swifty’s comment is:

The name sounds like a VHS porn publisher circa 1992. And frankly, the “X” looks like they lifted it straight out of the ExxonMobil logo. At least it’s only one “X”.

The new name seems uninspired and unnecessary. I personally think that Comcast would have been better served with a logo change rather than a name change.

On Feb.08.2010 at 07:29 AM

Dennis’s comment is:

Why oh why is the Y throwing it off so much? Couldn’t they extend the end of the y to be level with the end of the x? Perhaps if that used the same angles in the x as they did the y then… well, it would still stink.

This is on par with the awfulness of Verizon.

On Feb.08.2010 at 07:32 AM

room34’s comment is:

I didn’t realize it was April 1 already.

On Feb.08.2010 at 07:45 AM

Deshler’s comment is:

Telecom is a weird, weird business—these stodgy old giants can’t seem to find a good, solid name that doesn’t sound either ridiculously old-timey or like an old guy trying to be cool. Let’s round ‘em up:

Verizon: A bad name when it debuted, and a bad name now. The corporate explanation that it’s a combination of “veritas” and “horizon” was laugh-out-loud dumb.

AT&T: Okay, I admit, I sort of admire this name, with my soft spot for nostalgia. But SBC had a change to keep moving forward, with its Cingular brand that had really caught on. Then they bought the hollowed-out husk of Ma Bell and took over its dusty old name.

Embarq: A horrible, horrible wanna-be-cool name that was quickly dropped for the even more terrible ….

Century Link: This is now, I think, the largest or second largest non-baby-bell landline company and is a combination of CenturyTel and Embarq (which was the new awful name for the old Sprint/United Telephone). But it sounds like some circa-1995 BBS, or like a dot-com startup promising to build a fiber backbone to … the millennium and beyond!

And now we have XFINITY. Sheesh. Somebody get me a drink.

And I haven’t even started on the design …

On Feb.08.2010 at 07:49 AM

Larry W’s comment is:

Its not a bad logo… but it isn’t great.

I’d rather just have Comcast.

On Feb.08.2010 at 08:07 AM

Mike Maddaloni - @thehotiron’s comment is:

It looks like I am in good company in feeling this new moniker for Comcast reminded me about Verizon.

And not surprising, xfinitysucks.com is already registered anonymously via CSC Global, so I would imagine this was done on behalf of Comcast.

mp/m

On Feb.08.2010 at 08:12 AM

brix11’s comment is:

Another reason to hate Comcast.

On Feb.08.2010 at 08:21 AM

Michael Tyznik’s comment is:

I’d guess that the reason they’re rebranding their services is to separate them mentally from the corporation. The fact that a cable company owns NBC brings antitrust issues to a lot of people’s minds, so they’re trying to break the obvious connection between Comcast and cable.

On Feb.08.2010 at 08:24 AM

wctaiwan’s comment is:

Comcast was a good name. Xfinity sounds either like some crappy MMORPG or a new hybrid car.

The logo is self is okay, I guess, but you really can’t get more generic than that.

On Feb.08.2010 at 08:30 AM

jonathan’s comment is:

The gradient really does it for me. And its so much easier to say now than Comcast, say it with me now… Xfinity.

On Feb.08.2010 at 08:34 AM

Geoffrey’s comment is:

Cablevision did a similar thing a while back, rebranding its services “Optimum” because of a negative impression with the company overall. Sort of makes people forget that they’re paying Cablevision.

On Feb.08.2010 at 08:41 AM

Just me’s comment is:

When spoken, “comcast” sounds much better than “eksfinity”.

Not only that but Xfinity seem to refer to finity more than to infinity.

Also, if they really wanted a change, why not use the NBC trademark and logo now that they own them?

On Feb.08.2010 at 08:58 AM

Rondal’s comment is:

Geoffrey hit the nail right on the head. Instead of trying to run away from their existing brand, Comcast should focus their energies on improving their customer service and satisfaction practices. The company needs to repair its reputation, not change its name.

On Feb.08.2010 at 09:08 AM

Len Damico’s comment is:

I don’t think we can really start this crit until someone tells us how it’s pronounced?

On Feb.08.2010 at 09:13 AM

Ronlewhorn’s comment is:

only thing that can save this is a voice-over from James Earl Jones introducting it.

On Feb.08.2010 at 09:14 AM

john’s comment is:

i guess this goes to show if you ruin your brand and have enough money, you can just start a new one. i’m sure no one will notice!

On Feb.08.2010 at 09:27 AM

Huntley Brinkley’s comment is:

the shot of the xfinity logo on the clouds reminds me of a scene from SCROOGED with Bill Murray, who plays a network TV exec. In the scene, he unveils a promo for their christmas special:

Acid rain.
Drug addiction.
International terrorism.
Freeway killers.
Now, more than ever…
..we must remember the true meaning of Christmas.
Don’t miss Charles Dickens’ immortal classic, “Scrooge”,
Your life might just depend on it.

On Feb.08.2010 at 09:45 AM

Daho’s comment is:

Horrible name on so many levels. Xfinity sounds like the opposite of Infinity, and will hopefully have that short a life.

This seriously sounds like a joke 30 Rock would pull off over the Comcast merger. I can hear Liz Lemon and Jack Donaghy talking about “Xfinity” being their new parent company.

On Feb.08.2010 at 09:46 AM

Carlo’s comment is:

Nooo, no, no! Why, why, why?
This is so wrong on so many levels it reeks of someone new to the company/board marking their territory just because they can. Ugh.
The fact that the new name has the same amount of letters yet is twice as hard to say, and has no easy connection to the idea of media, communications, or broadcast like the name “Comcast”, sums up how recklessness this decision was.

On Feb.08.2010 at 09:47 AM

Huntley Brinkley’s comment is:

the shot of the xfinity logo on the clouds and the tag line, “a new era of entertainment is about to begin” reminds me of a scene from SCROOGED with Bill Murray, who plays a network TV exec. In the scene, he unveils a promo for their christmas special:

Acid rain.
Drug addiction.
International terrorism.
Freeway killers.
Now, more than ever…
..we must remember the true meaning of Christmas.
Don’t miss Charles Dickens’ immortal classic, “Scrooge”,
Your life might just depend on it.

XFINITY - you life might just depend on it.

On Feb.08.2010 at 09:52 AM

Ryan’s comment is:

Agree on all fronts. Goofy, late-90s, exxxxxtreme, hard to spit out… but I’d also expect a much crappier logo to go with it. Does anyone know who came up with the name? Or the logo, while we’re at it?

On Feb.08.2010 at 10:35 AM

Camryn Brown’s comment is:

I’m surprised they didn’t leave the consumer brand as Comcast under a re-branded parent company. Seems less risky and less of a waste of past investments in brand equity.

On Feb.08.2010 at 10:47 AM

Dave’s comment is:

Now here I thought “comcast” was actually an ok telecom business name. Xfinity is disgusting.

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:01 AM

student loans’s comment is:

I do not sometimes comment on websites but I had to drop by and tell you thank you for writing this, I totally agree and with some luck people will see your argument.

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:06 AM

Alexxx P.’s comment is:

Xtreme! Xciting! Xcellent!

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:07 AM

Kevin Tucker’s comment is:

I rolled my eyes when I first saw this last week, and I still can’t quite get them to face forward. Oh, and all caps??? I guess they forgot to include that requirement in the LOGO….

And I hope this branding change signals a change in their service. As it is now, my Xternet speed is so slow sometimes it’s Xfuriating. And their attention to customer service is so lacking it’s practically Xdecent.

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:11 AM

rynot’s comment is:

so this is why my rates keep going up.

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:18 AM

David Miles’s comment is:

Xerox anyone?

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:26 AM

Glenn Sakamoto’s comment is:

Xcrapticular!

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:31 AM

David Miles’s comment is:

Xerox anyone?

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:32 AM

Brian Son’s comment is:

It’s turd-tastic. The logo, the approach.

They spent years building up the Comcast branding, which is still relatively new is it not? I still remember when I was in middle school and this random company called Comcast came around and took over AT&T.

Only time will tell how this will look, in my opinion, a waste of money when they could be making their current company, even better.

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:32 AM

David Miles’s comment is:

Xerox anyone?

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:35 AM

TBWO’s comment is:

Anyone know which agency did the work?

On Feb.08.2010 at 12:03 PM

Glenn Sakamoto’s comment is:

XXXfinity – All porn. all the time.

On Feb.08.2010 at 12:17 PM

CapnRob’s comment is:

I like busy work as much as the next guy. Do any of these XFINITY execs realize how many pay-per-views they’ll need to sell just to make this learning mistake?

PS - The name seems terribly close to CBS’s late Infinity Broadcasting Corporation. I think I’ll change my company name to OHsmobile.

On Feb.08.2010 at 12:35 PM

Rico’s comment is:

I’m tired of companies thinking that if they mix in an “x” somewhere (or a “q” for that matter) that somehow makes them cutting edge.

Also, what’s the deal with them (XFINITY) insisting that the company name be spelled all caps when referred to in a story, but the logo itself is all lowercase. You can’t have it both ways morons.

On Feb.08.2010 at 12:43 PM

Jay Sabicer’s comment is:

Sounds like a cable company to me - Xfinity, where you will get f*cked forever (of course, not in the good way).

On Feb.08.2010 at 12:59 PM

Peter Davos’s comment is:

Horrible, horrible, horrible name. Christ.

On Feb.08.2010 at 01:17 PM

Dallas Criminal lawyer’s comment is:

Great new logo, and especially the new name.

On Feb.08.2010 at 01:25 PM

Zakk Acreman’s comment is:

This article says that Siegel + Gale did the rebranding work.

I can’t get past the gradient. It could almost be a decent mark if it weren’t for that Microsoft WordArt gradient.

On Feb.08.2010 at 01:29 PM

Mark’s comment is:

Jesus, this is really just abysmal.

Someone described it the best above when they said it was “disgusting”. That’s XACTLY how I felt when I first read XFINITY. Makes me feel a little bit sick.

Blech.

On Feb.08.2010 at 01:32 PM

Jeff Barlow’s comment is:

We all know we could do a better job than this. I think one of the reasons this makes me sad is that it’s another reminder that the days are over for bringing in Paul Rand for a “Take-it-or-leave-it” brilliant logo.

But what about the other side of it. I think this is suffering from a combination of hate-it-on-the-internet-itis and we-fear-change syndrome. It seems that no matter what anyone does, if they post it online, it will be whined about. I think __ years from now when XFINITY hires someone else who wants to make their mark they’ll get a new “brand” and the internet will go into an outrage about how XFINITY was better.

The real problem that has happened is that a company is trying to change their brand by changing their logo. I say if you want to rebrand, put your money into your customers’ experience with you. Behavior effects brands much more effectively than logos and names do. Then once your customers build loyalty with your new inner self, you can adjust your visual brand to match it.

You don’t see Toyota going into name-change panic to affect their public image… they’re just fixing the cars.

Fix the cars XFINITY, fix the cars.

On Feb.08.2010 at 01:39 PM

andyRespire’s comment is:

This is exactly how the current Verizon logo SHOULD look.

On Feb.08.2010 at 01:48 PM

Johnny Griswold’s comment is:

How do you even say this name??

EX-Finity? -or- IKS-Finity?

Because, I instinctively wanna say it like “infinity”, but the “X” makes me think of “X-games to the max, dude!”.

Just an overall stupid name for a pain in the ass company.

On Feb.08.2010 at 01:58 PM

Margot’s comment is:

Mostly I get Biblical from the logo on top the clouds. Is that Heaven we’re supposed to see? Feels more like religious tchotkes.

On Feb.08.2010 at 02:21 PM

timr’s comment is:

Ipad or Xfinity - which has more absorbtion power?

On Feb.08.2010 at 02:26 PM

Dennis Van Staalduinen’s comment is:

It’s “Ex-Finity” as in “something for which I USED to have an affinity.”

I remember chuckling at this monster branding mash-up. But little did I realize they were considering this Xciting option for the whole shootin’ match!

BTW: here’s Comcast’s release on this: http://blog.comcast.com/2010/02/comcast-launches-xfinity.html

On Feb.08.2010 at 02:35 PM

Dave’s comment is:

Name is awful, logo is lacking. I’m very happy I just cancelled all my comcast. For unrelated reasons, but maybe now I will people it’s due to this poor logo and name.

On Feb.08.2010 at 02:39 PM

Scott’s comment is:

This name could have the coolest, best logo ever but the name makes me immediately want to find another service provider.

On Feb.08.2010 at 03:36 PM

MSGDS’s comment is:

What a terrible name and very poor design.

On Feb.08.2010 at 03:42 PM

the macho man’s comment is:

when i watch my sports on comcast sports network…will i be watching the XFINITY sports network? or just x sports?

also that name is stupid!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
omg!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
comcast must of announced this change still drunk from last nights’s super bowl.

“Who Dat Nation is coming on X Sports!” STUPID~ Better watch out b4 ESPN sues comcast (i mean XFINITY’s) butt for stealing the X Games brand to brand TV.

And I thought Drew Brees’s son looked cute on CBS!!!!!!!!!!!! You can’t wait 2 see how cute he looks on XFINITY Sports!!!

On Feb.08.2010 at 04:08 PM

Kevin’s comment is:

That is the wrong Before logo: See http://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/comcast_gets_niptuck.php and http://www.comcast.com/includes/images/logo.gif

On Feb.08.2010 at 04:11 PM

William’s comment is:

If God were to adopt a brand, it would be that web page.

On Feb.08.2010 at 04:37 PM

MightyDoggy’s comment is:

Just made some phone calls — turns out the “XF” is silent. And the “Y,” too.

On Feb.08.2010 at 05:14 PM

ixley’s comment is:

A powerful symbol for a bold new future of corporate mediocrity!

On Feb.08.2010 at 06:02 PM

Paul Rand’s comment is:

Did The Star Group based in Philly, design the new Comcast logo? Considering the fact that The Star Group designed the master piece for The City of Philadelphia at least they did not use Trebuchet this time around.

http://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/philadelphia_logo.gif

On Feb.08.2010 at 06:15 PM

Paul Rand’s comment is:

http://theredfarm.com/images/xs.jpg

On Feb.08.2010 at 06:28 PM

Jerry Kuyper’s comment is:

Kevin - good catch on the comcast logo

Armin - the letter spacing looks fine to me but I find the closed, bracketing aspect of the x and y to run counter to the concept of infinite.

On Feb.08.2010 at 07:44 PM

Jerry Kuyper’s comment is:

I suppose I should have stated how dismaying this name and logo are but it seemed to have have been covered by others.

I directed the development of the ExxonMobil identity while at Lippincott and I cannot look at this logo without seeing ExxonMobil.

On Feb.08.2010 at 07:49 PM

Paul C’s comment is:

The kerning is not fine and the y is wack - does not look like part of it.

Tony Spaeth said it best: “corporations are running out of words” so we will see more of these synthetic names.

Agree with the folks who think the real way to rebrand is to rethink your customer’s experience. Everything else is meaningless. Socially responsible branding begins with the way you treat your employees, and then they will treat the customers better. Charity begins at home.

On Feb.08.2010 at 08:38 PM

Jerry Kuyper’s comment is:

Paul C

Critiquing the letter spacing in this logo is like complaining about the fabric on the deck chairs of the Titanic.

That said, try moving the X and Y further away (which should fix the problem Armin described) and then get back to us.

I stand correct.

On Feb.08.2010 at 09:40 PM

Neoviky’s comment is:

Still a better name than iPad!!

Http://neoviky.blogspot.com

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:04 PM

r4 ds’s comment is:

Gland to know about comcast.I would say Comcast already serves a quarter of all U.S. households that pay for TV, would gain control of the NBC broadcast network, the Spanish-language Telemundo and about two dozen cable channels, including USA, Syfy and The Weather Channel. It also would get regional sports networks, Universal Pictures and theme parks.

On Feb.08.2010 at 11:40 PM

MightyDoggy’s comment is:

UPDATE: Apparently the “t” is also silent.

On Feb.09.2010 at 03:12 AM

phanyxx’s comment is:

It’s safe to say that the ‘XFINITY Voice’ communicates IN ALL CAPS!!!!!!!!!!!!11!!!11

On Feb.09.2010 at 03:12 AM

Jens’s comment is:

the name and logo feel like some Scientology product

On Feb.09.2010 at 10:45 AM

Matt Fouty’s comment is:

I agree with you about the tittles in this logo. Sometimes I think it makes sense to drop them as in this recent logo I did: http://mattfouty.com/assets/slide_logo_15_si.jpg. The space did not lend itself well to dotting the “i”. The overall wordmark looked much more coherent without it.

On Feb.09.2010 at 12:30 PM

Doppledangle’s comment is:

It just aint tight Yo. All the angles are screwed up. Anything “kind of cool” thats happening with the x/f is thrown off with the t/y. Looks like infinite porn to me.

On Feb.09.2010 at 04:40 PM

jaymo ’s comment is:

am i the only one that thinks the cross/clouds/sunburst trifecta is eerily reminiscent of those pictures in bibles.

On Feb.09.2010 at 08:42 PM

Jennifer’s comment is:

I think Comcast’s decision to rebrand its consumer services is a direct effort to shake the reputation they have for providing terrible customer service. “That which we call a rose, by any other name would smell as sweet (or sour, as is the case here).” From a design perspective, I can’t get over the kerning of the xf and ty.

On Feb.10.2010 at 09:38 AM

Atlanta accident injury lawyer’s comment is:

Not the largest fan of the new logo, what gets me is wondering why they did it. Especially without rational.

On Feb.10.2010 at 02:43 PM

Bill Dawson (XK9)’s comment is:

NOPE. DON’T LIKE IT. NOT ONE BIT.

Big pet peeve of in the identity world, creating a word so that you could “own” it. Even worse is when brand consultancies decided to reinvent phonetics. X when it starts a word is pronounced as a Z, unless it’s X-Acto. So this should be pronounced Ziffinity? Sounds pretty weak. EX-finity is just hard to say. I wonder how it will pronounced by its Spanish speaking consumers. Ess-finity?

I like it when it Standard Oil became Esso. Jell-O is a great product name.

Lewis Carroll did it in his poem Jabberwocky. Usually, as in that poem, most of these sound like nonsense.

On Feb.10.2010 at 03:58 PM

John L Hoh Jr’s comment is:

Unfortunately with branding and uniqueness, we see too many names with an “X” in them. “Q” will soon be popular (the Chevrolet Qar, anyone? the Qartune Network?). “Z” will likely be another candidate to tweak common words into strange new words and names.

So, what is “xfinity” anyway? Out of limits? Out of bounds?

On Feb.10.2010 at 04:21 PM

John Hinds’s comment is:

Can someone tell me what the hell was wrong with the name Comcast?
Why would you change your name for no reason?
The company must be run by complete morons.

On Feb.12.2010 at 01:15 AM

G. Alex’s comment is:

What’s with the “y”? It seems out of proportion…

On Feb.15.2010 at 03:18 AM

elmaha’s comment is:

looks nice ..

On Feb.17.2010 at 05:46 AM

David DeCheser’s comment is:

The identity and campaign feel very pharma to me.

Other than the obvious question of “why” not be answered, my biggest problem is how this thing just doesn’t roll off the tongue.

Ex-finity - is it something that used to be infinity, but isn’t now? Or is it Extreme Infinity? Kind of redundant.

However, if you read the user comments on their site where they’ve announced this, you’ll see that very few people even talk about the name. They just want good service. So, like Verizon, people will quickly get past the bad name.

On Feb.26.2010 at 10:48 PM

Lauren’s comment is:

Coming in way late on this but *shrug* The Xfinity is a larp at competing with Verizon’s Fios services. If you lived in the Northern VA area you would know Comcast and Verizon are at war. I have friends who work for Comcast and said that regardless of the the talking heads say its just a re-branding to sound fresh, modern and Xfast(the X is silent lol)With the markets in the areas they are targeting there highest user base is the young professional and you want to sound fresh, and not like Comcrap there affectionately given nick name. But the just of it is that this fancy new name and horrid logo are just an attempt to look cool, and in the end is that not the point of logos?

On Mar.26.2010 at 12:51 AM

Kacey Blane’s comment is:

Aha, so too it seemed to me.

On Jun.08.2010 at 07:32 PM

anthony’s comment is:

You know a new brand is in trouble when people can’t pronounce or spell your name. This is one of the worst name/logo combinations i’ve seen come from a big company. The people behind this toxic brainchild are clueless.

On Jul.24.2010 at 01:51 PM