Comcast confirmed that it will launch Gigabit Pro, its new fiber-based 2 Gbps residential broadband service, in Chattanooga, Tenn., where the MSO grapples with EPB Fiber Optics, which sells a 1-Gig service.
Comcast intends to make Gigabit Pro available in Chattanooga starting in June, according to the Times Free Press.Update: The MSO announced it will offer the service for up to 200,000 customers in Chattanooga in June and plans to "expand availability locally over the next several months."
Comcast has already announced it will offer Gigabit Pro in Atlanta, Florida (Miami, Jacksonville, West Palm and Ft. Lauderdale), and to parts of California, including Chico, Fresno, Marysville/Yuba City, Merced, Modesto, Monterey, Sacramento, Salinas, San Francisco Bay Area, Santa Barbara County, Stockton and Visalia.
Comcast will offer the uncapped Gigabit Pro service to residential customers who are within “close proximity” (about one-third of a mile) of Comcast’s fiber network, which consists of more than 145,000 route miles. Using this approach, Comcast expects to make Gigabit Pro available to about 18 million homes by the end of the year.
Gigabit Pro uses fiber-to-the-premises technology, but Comcast also plans to offer gigabit speeds to residential customers on its HFC network using the emerging DOCSIS 3.1 platform.
Comcast has not announced pricing for Gigabit Pro. In Chattanooga, EPB Fiber Optics is currently selling 1-Gig service for $69.99 per month. In 2008, Comcast tried so sue EPB and block the municipal's fiber buildout, but a court dismissed the suit later that year.
