Public Housing Gets Broadband From HUD, Comcast
Comcast will expand Internet Essentials to public housing residents in select local markets through a pilot program with the Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD and Comcast said Thursday. In the pilot, Comcast said it will provide service to public housing residents in Miami-Dade County and the cities of Nashville, Seattle and Philadelphia. The pilot is part of the Obama administration’s ConnectHome initiative to close the digital divide for public housing residents. The FCC plans a March 31 vote on a draft order (see 1603220044) to provide broadband service to low-income consumers through the Lifeline program.
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All public housing residents in the four pilot markets are eligible to apply, regardless of whether they have a child in the National School Lunch Program, said HUD and Comcast. Internet Essentials is a low-cost broadband service by Comcast aimed at increasing broadband adoption. The service costs $9.95 a month plus tax and provides download speeds up to 10 Mbps, plus a free Wi-Fi router, free digital literacy training, and an optional computer priced at less than $150.
On how HUD and Comcast selected the four markets, a HUD spokesman told us, “Seattle, Nashville and Philly have already been ConnectHome communities and were part of the original announcement last July. Miami is part of the expanded ConnectHome network because of the community's ongoing efforts to close the digital divide.” Considerations included franchise agreements, operational readiness and relationships with cities and public housing groups, Comcast confirmed. The program could be expanded to public housing residents in all markets where Comcast provides service, the company said.
HUD Secretary Julián Castro, Comcast Chief Diversity Officer David Cohen, Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez and Miami Mayor Tomás Regalado unveiled the pilot program Thursday at Rainbow Village, a Miami public housing development. Comcast technicians installed Internet and gave each Rainbow Village household a laptop and six months of Internet service. The cable company also donated 15 new computers to the Rainbow Village computer lab for digital literacy training.
“ConnectHome is expanding opportunity for the next generation, preparing them for success in the 21st century,” said Castro. “Through [Comcast’s] commitment and all of our great stakeholders, public and private, we’re leveling the playing field for public housing residents across the nation and opening doors to prosperity that otherwise would remain closed.”
The pilot program aims to narrow the digital divide, providing job and educational opportunities to people who couldn't previously afford the Internet, said Comcast’s Cohen. “Internet access at home is essential to succeed in today’s digital world on all fronts, from employment to education. Unfortunately, a cruel irony is at work, as the majority of low-income families, including those in public housing, who truly need the transformative power of the Internet, are not connected.”
Internet Essentials has connected more than 600,000 low-income families since Comcast launched the program five years ago, Comcast said. In 2015, Comcast saw a 30 percent increase in enrollments over the previous year, it said. The company now has Internet Essentials pilot programs for ConnectHome communities; low-income senior citizens in Boston; Palm Beach County, Florida; San Francisco and Seattle; and low-income community college students in Illinois and Colorado. Eligibility for the program in non-pilot communities requires families have at least one child eligible to participate in the National School Lunch Program.