Potent Portables: Comcast Going Beyond Boxes?

Comcast has filed for trademark protection for two devices as the company looks to extend its reach beyond the set-top box and stave off the rising competition. Multichannel News reports:

Last fall Comcast registered for trademark protection for AnyReach, a portable TV and video player, and XtraScreen, which appears to provide a way to sling television content to computers over a wireless connection.

If it pans out, Comcast is certainly leaving no stone unturned as it looks to fend off the likes of Apple, TiVo and HP. The cable company is rolling out its AnyRoom mutli-room DVR service, has the AnyPlay portable DVR (it’s really milking that “Any” brand name), and is part of the tru2way open platform to deliver interactive television services. Oh, and if those don’t work, Comcast will just throttle your bandwidth. Check and mate, Apple TV.

The only saving grace? Knowing Comcast, if it does introduce these new devices — they’ll probably suck.