Windstream Communications plans to ease into providing residential TV service starting next year, when it will begin to offer service in Lincoln, NE.
The new service, which Windstream is calling Kinetic, will be delivered using Ericsson’s Mediaroom platform. The service will be available through a range of set-tops and DVRs, which the company said will be entirely wireless.
Features will include video on demand, whole-home DVR, and multi-screen viewing. TV service will be available bundled with high-speed Internet and phone service.
Windstream said the service will be available to about 50,000 homes in Lincoln, roughly half the total number of homes in the city. In the last year, the company has been extending fiber into residential neighborhoods, and as of the beginning of this year had strung fiber to the home to 500 new residences, according to local reports.
Time Warner Cable is the incumbent cable operator in the city.
Windstream said it intends to roll out pay TV services to additional markets in the latter half of 2015 and beyond. The company is best known for providing business services, relying on a fiber network that reaches most major markets in the country.
David Redmond, president of consumer services at Windstream, said, “We’re extremely excited to roll out Kinetic in 2015 and beyond because we believe Kinetic represents more than just a great entertainment experience; it represents a stronger connection between Windstream and the communities we serve.”
