Complete Cable Show 2009 coverage from Multichannel News
Cablevision Systems' high-speed Internet customers have accessed the Web more than 1 million times over its new Optimum Wi-Fi service, according to the New York-area operator.
In a project with an estimated price tag of $300 million, the company began activating Optimum Wi-Fi last year and expects to complete the deployment across its entire service area in early 2010.
Cablevision operates Wi-Fi hot spots in commercial and high-traffic locations across its Long Island, Connecticut and Westchester/Dutchess service areas, in Bergen and Passaic counties in New Jersey, and at hundreds of commuter rail stations across the New York metropolitan area. The service is available to Optimum Online broadband subscribers for no additional charge.
"Optimum Wi-Fi is as valuable to consumers and as disruptive to existing wireless data providers as our residential voice product was to traditional landline telephony, and today Cablevision is the majority residential phone provider across much of our market," Cablevision chief operating officer Tom Rutledge said in a statement.
Information on Optimum Wi0Fi and network coverage maps are available at http://www.optimumwifi.com. The service provides symmetrical speeds of up to 1.5 Megabits per second.
