Building on deployments started in 2015, Altice plans to have 1 Gbps service available by year-end 2016 in more than 250 Suddenlink-served communities, representing more than 60% of the company's high-speed Internet customers. On the same timing, more than 70% of Suddenlink Internet customers are expected to have access to speeds of 400 Mbps or greater. Additional GigaSpeed deployments are expected in 2017, rounding out the nearly $250 million dollar investment in the program.
"Investment in infrastructure is at the heart of the Altice business model," said Altice USA Co-President and CFO Charles Stewart. "In order to offer the best services and speeds to our customers, we're investing more than $4 billion per year in our networks around the world. Forward-thinking programs like Operation GigaSpeed fit perfectly with this commitment."
Altice makes 1 Gigabit broadband available to all neighborhoods and households in each Suddenlink market where the service is launched, rather than only to select neighborhoods. At the same time, Altice upgrades other services; standard offerings include 50, 100, and 200 Mbps, plus gigabit. Local businesses also have access to the gigabit service, along with customized, multi-gigabit services that the company has offered for years.
The company also plans to introduce in Suddenlink markets a home gateway device that is already deployed by other Altice Group companies.