Comcast broadened the commercial launch of DOCSIS 3.1 services with debuts in its hometown of Philadelphia and Baltimore.
The launch in greater Philadelphia also includes surrounding areas of Bucks, Montgomery, Chester and Delaware counties, as well as parts of New Jersey and in New Castle County. In addition to the city of Baltimore, Comcast’s D3.1 rollout there also covers Baltimore county, Annapolis, Anne Arundel County, Carroll County, Hartford County and Howard County.
Comcast noted that D3.1-based services will be launched in other parts of greater Philadelphia, New Jersey and Delaware in the coming weeks.
Comcast is selling a D3.1-powered service that delivers up to 1 Gbps downstream in Philadelphia and Baltimore for the promotional price of $79.99 per month with a 12-month contract, or $104.95 per month without a contract.
Comcast, which recently launched a home WiFi management platform called ‘xFi,’ leaned on standalone D3.1 modems for the early phases of its deployment, but has also been starting to deploy its new xFi Advanced Wireless Gateway (formerly known as the XB6).
RELATED: Comcast Tacks On xFi Features
Comcast has recently introduced DOCSIS 3.1-based gigabit internet service in several other systems, including Boston, Colorado and Oregon; Kansas City; Houston; Seattle, southwest Washington, San Francisco and most of the Bay Area in California.
RELATED: Comcast Boots Up DOCSIS 3.1 in Boston
Other Comcast D3.1 market launches include Utah; Detroit, Mich.; Huntsville and Tuscaloosa, Ala.; Indiana; Nashville, Knoxville, and Chattanooga, Tenn.; Chicago; Atlanta; and Ft. Lauderdale, Jacksonville, and Miami, Fla.
Comcast markets on tap for D3.1 include Washington, DC; Charlottesville, Va.; and Harrisburg and Lancaster, Pa.
Several other U.S. cable operators have been deploying DOCSIS 3.1 aggressively, including Mediacom Communications, RCN Corp, and WideOpenWest. Cox Communications is also gearing up to deploy DOCSIS 3.1 on a broad basis.
Comcast has also rolled out “Gigabit Pro,” a more expensive symmetrical 2 Gbps service that uses fiber-to-the-premises technologies, in most of the MSO’s markets.
