Xfinity adds Spectrum News outlets in Florida, N.J. and Connecticut

Charter’s Spectrum News has reached a deal to add more of its news channels to Comcast Xfinity subscribers’ lineups.

Spectrum and Comcast first forged a deal in 2024 after Xfinity subscribers throughout California began to receive Spectrum News 1 Los Angeles during the time devastating wildfires were spreading.

As of December 2025, Xfinity customers in Florida will receive either Spectrum News 13, which is based in Orlando, or Spectrum Bay News 9 out of Tampa. 

Meanwhile, subscribers in Western Connecticut and Northern New Jersey have started receiving Spectrum News NY1, originally known as simply NY1.

Notably, however, Xfinity subscribers within New York City will not receive the channel, where it appears it will continue to be an exclusive offering for Spectrum customers. 

“No one covers New York City like Spectrum News NY1,” said Sam Singal, group vice president of news and content, Spectrum News, in a statement. “What happens here impacts the entire tri-state area, and residents who want to be fully informed turn to NY1 for our comprehensive and balanced political reporting, and around-the-clock community-driven reporting.”

Customers in California will continue to receive the L.A.-based channel.

24-hour regional news networks were created as a way to offer an exclusive benefit to subscribers of the cable company that operated them. These networks were once scattered across the country and run by multiple operators, though their degree of success varied. In some regions, these networks became household names, such as NY1.

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Offering Comcast the feeds in select markets may seemingly goes against this original goal, but it’s important to keep in mind the industry has shifted significantly and most MVPDs are struggling to retain viewers.

Comcast likely benefits by being able to offer an additional network to its subscribers, likely at a relatively low cost. 

It also allows it to offer its viewers access to a regional news offering without incurring the expense of launching its own newsrooms. 

For its part, Charter is likely able to add additional revenue to its books through any carriage fees Comcast is paying. It is also likely to begin promoting its expanded reach into new markets, which could increase viewership and potentially have a positive spin on linear advertising, which has largely been in decline across the industry. It will also likely be able to sell spots that air only in Xfinity markets, allowing advertisers to reach new viewers. 

Charter also announced it will be hiring three new reporters for its Florida networks to increase coverage in Xfinity markets. Again, this strategy means that Comcast can offer its viewers relevant news coverage without having to create its own news operation.

By avoiding adding NY1 to the New York City proper market, Spectrum is still retaining a level of exclusivity for one of the largest areas the channel serves. Comcast does sell cable TV services in New York City, but these subscribers will be specifically barred from viewing NY1.

Financial and other terms of the deal were not announced.

In some cases, the providers assigned these networks to Channel 1, a number that is unsupported in over-the-air broadcasting but has the distinction of being easy to remember and, literally, at the beginning of the lineup.

Charter acquired the Tampa and Orlando markets from Advance’s Brighthouse Networks in 2016. Brighthouse did not use the Channel 1 assignment for its regional news offerings and the networks were not rebranded. 

In Florida, in addition to its coverage of Orange, Osceola, Brevard, Flagler, Volusia, Lake, Marion, Sumter, and Seminole counties, News 13 will now provide local news for The Villages with a dedicated multimedia journalist covering the age-restricted community. Bay News 9 covers Pinellas, Hillsborough, Citrus, Manatee, Hernando, Pasco, Polk counties and also will have a dedicated multimedia journalist covering Sarasota County.

Along with community-specific reporting, the Florida networks also provide state legislative reporting from Spectrum News Capital Reporter Jason Delgado, based in Tallahassee, as well as daily coverage of the Florida congressional delegation from Spectrum News Washington D.C. Reporter Corina Cappabianca, based in the Spectrum News D.C. Bureau.

On weeknights at 7 p.m., both networks air a joint half-hour statewide show, “Political Connections,” co-hosted by News 13 anchor Ybeth Bruzual and Bay News 9 anchor Holly Gregory featuring balanced reporting on local, state, and national political news of the day. On Sundays at 11:30 a.m., the networks air a public affairs program, “In Focus with Allison Walker,” featuring half-hour roundtable discussions with local, state, and national political and community leaders and influencers on important kitchen table issues.

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Spectrum News 13 was originally known as Central Florida News 13. 

NY1’s political programming includes the nightly hour-long political news TV program, “Inside City Hall,” hosted by Political Anchor Errol Louis, two weekly political podcasts, “Off Topic/On Politics” and “You Decide,” the weekly public affairs program “In Focus with Cheryl Wills,” around-the-clock coverage of New York City politics, as well as coverage of state and national government from Spectrum News teams located in Albany and Washington, D.C.