At the Goldman Sachs Communicopia conference Tuesday morning, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts said the operator is looking to roll out its own wireless service by mid-2017, according to several reports — including some in the Wall Street Journal, USA Today and Business Insider, among others.
Roberts reported the company will leverage Comcast’s 15 million WiFi hot spots and use leased airwaves from Verizon based on a deal from 2011 that allows the cable op to offer wireless service with Verizon’s network with set terms and pricing, according to the WSJ. The newspaper further noted that Comcast will look to market the wireless service inside its existing footprint, to existing and potential Comcast cable customers, as opposed to nationwide.
USA Today points out that Comcast can lease bandwidth on Verizon’s network as part of a Justice Department agreement when Verizon bought $3.6 billion in wireless spectrum from Comcast and other pay TV ops.
“We believe there is a big payback with reduced churn, more stickiness, better satisfaction and better product purchasing,” Roberts says, according to the USA Today article.
Telecom Analyst Jan Dawson of Jackdaw Research told the Associated Press that pricing is going to be a key factor in the endeavor: “If Comcast is to make this a compelling offer, especially given their lack of history in wireless, they’re going to have to offer some steep discounts in their bundles.”
More coverage is available here from our sister publication, Wireless Week.
