Comcast's ‘Internet Essentials’ Passes 1 Million Mark

Internet Essentials, Comcast’s Internet adoption program for low-income households, has connected more than 1 million Americans, company executive vice president David Cohen announced in testimony to the US Senate Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet.

Now in its third year, Internet Essentials is a voluntary commitment linked to Comcast's acquisition of NBCUniversal that targets low-income households with school-age children who are eligible to receive free lunches under the federally assisted National School Lunch Program. Qualified households receive discounted Internet service from Comcast at $9.95 per month, the option to purchase an Internet-ready PC for under $150, and access to a free Internet training. In August 2013, Comcast announced it had connected more than 220,000 families and a total of 900,000 Americans. As year three of Internet Essentials got underway, Comcast added several enhancements, including a ratcheting up of the program’s max burst speeds to 5 Mbps downstream and 1 Mbps upstream. That’s up from a bump to 3 Mbps down/768 kbps upstream that Comcast made in 2012, and well above the max speeds originally supported by Internet Essentials (1.5 Mbps/364 kbps).