About 700 Wawa stores in six states now provide free WiFi access thanks to a new partnership with Comcast’s business services unit.
Comcast Business said its Enterprise division installed the managed public/private WiFi network (along with managed broadband services) in those stores located in Delaware, Florida, Maryland, new Jersey, Pennsylvania and Virginia. To gain free WiFi access and sidestep usage of the cellular network, Wawa customers at those locations will need to point their devices to the “xfinitywifi” SSID.
Notably, the scope of the agreement includes deployments in Wawa stores that are both in and out of Comcast’s traditional service footprint.
Update: Comcast confirmed that coverage outside its traditional footprint in the Wawa deal is coming way of its announcement last fall to focus on enterprise business customers in the Fortune 1000 and enable that in part through network agreements with other cable operators, a group that includes Time Warner Cable, Charter Communications, Cox Communications and Cablevision Systems.
Comcast Business in January announced the commercial launch of WiFi Pro, a cloud-controlled WiFi platform for small- and medium-sized businesses and enterprise branch locations.
"This collaboration between Xfinity and Comcast Business to deliver an integrated, managed Wi-Fi service to Wawa, a respected mainstay in the Philadelphia business community, highlights the value we can deliver to customers across our high-growth businesses," said Bill Stemper, president of Comcast Business, in a statement. “As more enterprises look to improve the customer experience at their branch locations, fast and reliable Wi-Fi has become a cornerstone for attracting and retaining customers. Comcast has the services and expertise to enable a great Wi-Fi experience to all locations within a distributed enterprise whether it’s a retailer like Wawa, a bank, hotel or restaurant chain."
Separately, Comcast Business said it notched a deal to be the exclusive network services provider for Bethesda Green, a non-profit incubator for environmentally sustainable businesses in the Washington, D.C., suburb of Montgomery County, Md. The agreement included a 1 Gbps Ethernet Dedicated Internet line that’s capable of scaling up to 10 Gbps.
Comcast Business pulled in $1.25 billion in revenues in Q4 2015, up from $1.05 billion the year-ago quarter. Comcast is scheduled to report Q1 2016 results on Wednesday (April 27) morning.
