David L. Cohen, Executive Vice President of Comcast Corporation, announced today that the Internet Essentials broadband adoption program would be extended “indefinitely”, extending the initial three year commitment made by Comcast to the FCC as part of its NBC Universal merger approval. As of end of 2013, Cohen said 1.2 million low income Americans had signed up for the program, or about 300,000 families. This included 35,205 residents in California, and more than 12,600 in the San Francisco metro area, 9,250 in the Fresno metro area and 7,100 in the Sacramento metro area.
Cohen announced 15 communities had been named “Gold Medal Recognition Program” winners, who will receive more than $1 million in grants to non profit partners in 15 communities across the country whose area school districts have led the way in connecting families to home broadband through the Internet Essentials program. California won two of these grants: $100,000 in Fresno and $50,000 for Elk Grove, California (near Sacramento). For the next two weeks until March 18, 2014, these 20 gold medal communities may sign up new eligible subscribers for a free six months of Internet Essentials service. In Fresno, the Boys and Girls Club of Fresno County, the Center for Multicultural Cooperation, the Fresno Area Hispanic Foundation and Reading & Beyond will receive the grants. In Elk Grove, the community groups to receive the grants are the Boys and Girls Club of Sacramento, La Familia Counseling Center and Next Ed. Further, San Francisco and Stockton were named by Comcast among five more “most improved” communities for 2013 improvements in the program sign ups.
The 15 Gold Medal-recognized communities that will create “Internet Essentials learning zones” include: Adams County, Colo.; Atlanta, Ga; Aurora, Colo.; Chicago, Ill.; Cicero-Berwyn, Ill.; Collier, Fla.; Denver, Colo.; Elk Grove, Calif.; Fresno, Calif.; Miami, Fla.; Palm Beach, Fla.; Pasadena, Tex.; Seattle, Wash.; St. Paul, Minn.; and Tacoma, Washington. These networks of non-profit partners will work together to “enhance public Internet access and increase family-focused digital literacy training” in Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, Fresno, Miami, and Seattle, among others. The five “Most Improved” communities for Internet Essential signs ups in 2013 included Baltimore, Md; Lee, Fla.; Philadelphia, Pa.; San Francisco, Calif.; and Stockton, California.
Notably, Cohen also announced that both the 15 Gold Medal Communities and the five Most Improved communities will have the ability to have any Internet Essentials eligible families in their areas (for California, those who reside in Fresno County, Sacramento County, San Joaquin County, and San Francisco County) who are not currently Comcast customers will receive six months of free Internet service if they apply for the program by March 18, 2014 and are approved. Families should call 1-855-846-8376 or visit www.InternetEssentials.com for more information on whether they are qualified and to sign up. Spanish speakers may call 1-855-765-6995 or visit www.InternetBasico.com.
Cohen praised efforts of over 8,000 community partners — school districts, community groups, local government agencies — who helped the company with sign-ups for the Internet Essentials program. He said the 1.2 million persons signed up for the program represented 11% of eligible families for the program. He touted it as the largest and most successful broadband adoption program ever undertaken in the country. He said the company will continue to focus on low income students, consistent with President Obama’s recent announcement regarding the White House’s ConnectED initiative and the FCC Chairman’s announcement regarding increasing the E-Rate funds for schools and libraries. He said the company had run one pilot program for seniors with AARP, but for now, the program eligibility would remain with families with at least one K-12 student eligible for the free or reduced lunch program in Comcast’s service areas. He noted Comcast had extended eligibility a number of times during the 2-1/2 years of the program, to increase the eligible pool of students by 30%. Originally the program only extended to public school students who took the free lunch under the National School Lunch Program; it now includes any eligible reduced or free lunch students, including those at public, private, parochial, and home school students.
The Internet Essentials program includes a discounted $9.95 Internet service plus tax a month, an optional $150 Internet ready computer and free online or in- person digital literacy training for families with at least one K-12 child eligible for the free or reduced national school lunch program. The company believes there are 2.6 million eligible families in its service areas.
