Comcast Rolls Out Wideband in Baltimore

December 26, 2008

By Mike Peters

Comcast has announced the launch of next-generation DOCSIS 3.0 wideband to residential homes and businesses in Baltimore including areas in Anne Arundel County, City of Annapolis, and Howard County. Comcast expects to complete the rollout in the remainder of the market by mid-2009.

Comcast’s Wideband Residential High-Speed Internet Tiers

Comcast’s new residential tiers include: Extreme 50, with up to 50 Mbps downstream speed and up to 10 Mbps upstream speed; and Ultra, offering up to 22 Mbps downstream speed and up to 5 Mbps upstream speed.

With Extreme 50, Comcast customers will be able to download a high-def movie (6 GB) in about 16 minutes, a standard-def movie (2 GB) in about 5 minutes, and a standard-def TV show (300 MB) in a matter of seconds. Customers with Extreme 50 also will be able to download digital photos, songs, and games faster than ever.

In addition to the new speed tiers, Comcast also is increasing speeds for most of its existing customers. Performance tier customers will benefit from doubled downstream and upstream speeds. Performance Plus customers will be upgraded to Comcast’s Blast! tier, which will also double their download and upload speeds. Plus, PowerBoost technology enables customers to access even faster speeds to download and upload files such as videos, games, music, and photos.

New Comcast Business Class Speed Tiers up to 50 Mbps

Business customers will benefit from wideband with increased efficiency and productivity. The Deluxe 50 Mbps / 10 Mbps tier includes a full suite of features and support. As part of their service, Comcast Business Class customers receive Microsoft Communication Services, providing corporate-class e-mail, calendaring, and document sharing, as well as additional benefits such as firewall protection, static IP addresses, multiple e-mail addresses, and business class 24/7 customer support.

Existing business class customers also will receive complimentary speed increases. Speeds on the Starter tier will be doubled to up to 12 Mbps/2 Mbps, and a new Premium tier will be introduced offering speeds up to 22 Mbps/5 Mbps.