Cablevision Systems is letting subscribers flick on the TV to find their nearest wireless hotspots.
The New York-based operator launched an interactive channel on channel 910 that displays a localized map -- based on a subscriber's location -- showing indoor and outdoor Optimum Wi-Fi access points where wireless Internet access is available to broadband customers.
Cablevision in 2008 kicked off an initiative to build out Wi-Fi across its footprint spanning New York, New Jersey and Connecticut for an estimated cost of more than $300 million.
The operator also provides a Wi-Fi finder online at www.optimum.net/WiFi/Find.
To date, more than 500,000 Optimum Online high-speed Internet customers -- or at least 17% of Cablevision's 2.9 million broadband users -- have accessed the Wi-Fi service, according to the MSO.
Optimum Wi-Fi delivers up to 15 Megabits per second downstream and 4 Mbps upstream via "tens of thousands" of outdoor access points and more than 7,000 indoor locations the operator's footprint, according to Cablevision.
In addition, Cablevision has inked agreements with Comcast and Time Warner Cable, to let customers of all three operators access any of their Wi-Fi networks in New York and New Jersey.
The Optimum Wi-Fi channel also provides video tutorials, which include an overview of the service and how to authenticate devices to automatically sign-in to Optimum Wi-Fi.
Cablevision said it's running interactive 30-second cross-channel Optimum Wi-Fi promos that let customers click "select" for more information to tune to channel 910.
