Comcast, the third-largest telecommunications company in the United States, aims to provide a thousand Wi-Fi zones across the country for students by the end of 2021. The goal of this ambitious project is to give students and other community members access to free wireless connections. These free Wi-Fi hotspots are referred to as lift zones. Comcast announced the plan in late 2020 as part of a response to circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The plan is also a complement to similar efforts the company is already making to boost online access nationwide.
How Wi-Fi Lift Zones Will Benefit U.S. Communities
During the COVID pandemic, many schools shifted to online learning. However, according to the Federal Communication Commission’s Eighth Broadband Progress Report, about 6 percent of the population in the United States lacks access to fixed broadband internet service. This is more likely to be the case in rural areas. The main way Comcast’s program will benefit communities across the U.S. is to provide a place to go for Wi-Fi access. In addition to providing Wi-Fi access, the lift zones also help students in multiple grade levels keep up in school. Comcast is achieving this part of the company’s goal with access to hundreds of hours of educational content. Such materials can, for instance, supplement what’s acquired from other online learning resources.
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Where Wi-Fi Lift Zones Are Already Available
Comcast hopes to have the thousand Wi-Fi lift zones set up and available in various areas nationwide by the time 2021 comes to a close. Locations are already up, running, and accessible in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area, Baltimore, Chicago, Trenton, New Jersey, and Philadelphia. Comcast is working with school districts and other community officials and leaders to find the spaces needed for the Wi-Fi lift zones. Comcast announced plans to keep Wi-Fi hotspots the company has set up across the U.S. available for the next three years, at least.
Enhancing Digital Literacy Training Efforts
The Wi-Fi lift zone program isn’t all Comcast is doing to help with education-related efforts. The company has also invested more than $600 million in digital literacy training for both students and their family members. Some resources of this nature are currently accessible on the company’s website.
Building on Other Efforts to Help Low-Income Families
Comcast has a long history of helping low-income families get connected to the internet. In fact, the company has been involved in such efforts since 2011. This is when the company launched its Internet Essentials program. It’s a program that gives qualifying customers internet access for just under $10 a month. Since this program was launched, more than 10 million families have gained access to affordable internet service. Initially, this program provided online access at 25 Mbps. However, the company upped that to 50 Mbps during the pandemic. The price charged to qualifying families has remained the same since the Internet Essentials program was launched.
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Future Plans from Comcast
Comcast plans to spend a total of $1 billion altogether to help increase access to the internet for people in under-served communities and low-income families. The company plans to continue with such efforts for at least another decade.
Some community libraries provide free internet access to patrons, as do some other publicly accessible locations. Additionally, there are many national chains where free Wi-Fi access is available at many locations. This list includes Starbucks, McDonald’s, Taco Bell, and Walmart. That said, Comcast believes it’s equally important to give students and other individuals lacking direct internet access the opportunity to be more conveniently connected.
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