It's not TV, it's home security: Comcast branches out

Multi-faceted Comcast (Nasdaq: CMCSA) has added yet another layer of business to its voice, video, data, broadcast, amusement park, wireless (albeit not really mobile voice) and sports empire: home security.

For another $39.95 a month, Comcast customers in selected markets will have access to a service that lets them remotely adjust lights and thermostats, watch cameras and get e-mail or text alerts when doors and windows open or close. The video is available on an Xfinity website or via an Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) iPad application.

The new service is a "broadband-based product" that "combines traditional security with our digital products that we're already putting in the home," said Mitch Bowling, who's been named to head the new business.

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