Mediacom Communications has begun launching gigabit Internet speeds based on DOCSIS 3.1 within its Illinois service territory, starting with more than 275 small cities and towns. An additional 70 communities are slated to launch in the next two months. The service is available to both residential and business customers.
"Since 1996, Mediacom has invested over $8 billion of private capital to acquire, upgrade and expand our national broadband network so that hard-working families throughout the smaller markets we serve receive the same advanced communications services as America's largest cities," said Todd Curtis, Group Vice President for Mediacom's Lincoln Region. "As a result of these investments, Mediacom will be able to offer 1 Gig Internet services to over 400,000 Illinois households and position hundreds of rural communities across the Land of Lincoln at the forefront of America's transition into the gigabit era."
Mediacom's DOCSIS 3.1 deployment is based on a mix of CCAP gear from Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO) and Casa Systems, with modems from Technicolor. The company plans to incorporate modems from other vendors based on availability. Mediacom plans to deploy DOCSIS 3.1-based gigabit services to virtually all of the 3 million homes and businesses within its 22-state footprint. To date, the company has launched 1 Gbps services in more 800 communities, most recently in southwest Georgia. Mediacom plans to make additional gigabit launches on a market-by-market basis throughout the remainder of the year based on modem availability. In conjunction with each gigabit deployment, the company will also introduce a new 500 Mbps tier of service.
"In today's global economy, broadband speed and access are critical components to driving local economic growth," said Hardik Bhatt, secretary of the Illinois Department of Innovation and Technology. "As a result of Mediacom's efforts to make gigabit broadband widely available in the markets it serves, hundreds of rural communities across Illinois will have the ability to compete on a level playing field with high-tech communities across the world."