A Northern California company that bills itself as the "worldwide leader in Wi-Fi monetization" is the vendor behind Comcast's and other US cable companies' promotional advertising campaign performed through JavaScript injection, Comcast said Monday.

Comcast spokesman Charlie Douglas confirmed the vendor's name, Front Porch of Sonora, hours after Ars reported that Comcast recently started serving Comcast ads to devices connected to one of its 3.5 million publicly accessible Wi-Fi hotspots across the US. We wrote that Comcast's decision to inject data into the net raises security concerns and cuts to the heart of the ongoing net neutrality debate.

As it turns out, Front Porch also does business with Cox, Time Warner, Bright House, and Cablevision in the US, Front Porch CTO Carlos Vazquez said in a telephone interview.

Vazquez said his most requested service for US broadband companies is the injection of an ad telling Web surfers that they're on a publicly available wireless network. Overseas in China, however, the company injects third-party ads for ISPs, he said.

"The most popular use case is a message that they are connected to the corresponding Wi-Fi network," Vasquez said of his American clients. He declined to detail the services he provided to individual clients but said they also include virus alerts, self-promotional ads and messaging that notifies customers that service is going to be interrupted.

Next month, Front Porch will provide what it is calling a "Network Monetization Demo" at a San Francisco trade show. The company, founded in 1998, will demonstrate how Wi-Fi providers—cable companies, carriers, retail outlets, and resorts—can financially capitalize on JavaScript-injected ad campaigns and "other methodologies," Vazquez said.

"Front Porch is the worldwide leader in Wi-Fi monetization. Its services use the patented PorchLight technology to generate millions of dollars for thousands of retailers, venues, and service providers in the US and abroad," the company said in a blog post Friday.

The company's literature says:

Front Porch's innovative product suite delivers engaging in-browser notifications directly to targeted subscribers, resulting in an unprecedented 'eyes on' communication medium for network providers. Using this patented technology decreases Internet provider expenses, while increasing revenue, customer communication, and satisfaction. Front Porch generates tens of millions of dollars of additional revenue every year for our current customers. Providers can communicate directly to the subscriber regardless of browser or operating system, and without the need for client software or configuration.

Comcast's advertising appears about every seven minutes. The ads, which last for just seconds before they trail away, tell consumers that they are on Comcast's Xfinity network as a "courtesy," Douglas said. The ads, however, also urge Web surfers to download Xfinity apps.

Front Porch, which has offices in Europe and China, says "Carriers with a Wi-Fi presence use Front Porch's ability to deliver semi-transparent floating branding notifications in a manner similar to television network watermarking. By periodically reminding users of their Wi-Fi presence and sponsorship, carriers improve corporate perception and brand recognition."

The company says in its literature that its "solutions are deployed worldwide on some of the world's most prominent networks." It said its clients are "several of the top five North American" cable companies. Front Porch also said it works for "the second largest Internet provider in China," has "Network installations in over 40 countries," and maintains "Large metro Wi-Fi installations." The company labeled its service as an unprecedented "eyes on" platform.

Listing image by Front Porch