Comcast $10 BROADBAND! Yes I said $10.00 #nocable2011

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Comcast’s $10 Broadband

Comcast is working diligently to ensure that the deal to merge its cable networks with the assets of NBC Universal gets regulatory approval, but one concession could have the cable provider introducing low-income families to more web-based content.

The $10-a-month broadband plan, which it calls the Comcast Broadband Opportunity Program (CBOP), targets poor households in its footprint. To be eligible for the CBOP, households must have at least one child that qualifies for the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), which gives free lunches to students whose households have annual incomes of less than 130 percent of the poverty level. In addition to cheap broadband access, the program is also designed to provide subsidized computers to qualifying households and to educate them about using that equipment and Internet access.

Cable providers are having a tough time retaining their poorest customers, particularly as the economy has sputtered along over recent years. At the same time that many in the United States have been battling hard times, cable bills have increased an average of 5 to 10 percent a year. That’s one reason Time Warner Cable recently announced its TV Essentials package: a lower-priced subscription plan aimed at low-income households.

For households choosing between cable TV and broadband, most have sided with the former. Comcast notes in its filing that for households with incomes below $20,000, only 40 percent sign up for broadband services. Comcast says more than a quarter of those households qualify for the proposed CBOP program under the National School Lunch Program rules.

But the possibility of a $10 broadband option also creates the opportunity for Comcast to introduce households in its broadband footprint to cheaper online video offerings. The ad-supported version of Hulu, for instance, carries much of the same scripted content that is available on broadcast networks, but is available for free. If subscribers want a wider amount of content, they can also pay for services like Netflix, which come much more cheaply than traditional pay TV packages. Read more at gigaom.com

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