Cable provider Cox Communications, announced today that it is first introducing its new wireless phone and mobile high speed Internet services beginning in Hampton Roads, Va., Omaha, Neb.; and Orange County, Calif.
Cox says it was the first cable company to begin offering traditional landline telephone services in 1997. Today, Cox claims to be the number one phone company in many markets it serves.
Cox is now also the first U.S. cable company to launch fully-integrated wireless phone and mobile high speed Internet services.
“In our initial markets, we are leveraging Sprint’s 3G CDMA network and assets to get to market quicker, while managing every aspect of the service ourselves,” Cox tells Broadband Reports. “In parallel, we are building our own wireless network with 3G CDMA for additional market launches that we’ll announce in the future,” says the cable company.
The largest Multiple System Operators in the United States are Comcast, with 24 million video customers, Time Warner Cable with 14.6 million and Cox Communications, the 3rd largest cable operator in the US with 6.2 million customers.
Both Comcast and Time-Warner plan to offer mobile WiMAX in association with Clear. Comcast will be bundling the WiMax with cablem modem service for $49.99 per month for the first year. This gives consumers 12 Mbps at home and up to 4 Mbps while on the go. For $69.99 a month, users can get the same services and nationwide 3G access. Existing customers with the “Triple Play” package can get 4G access for an additional $30 a month.
Cox Communications plans to offer wireless cellular service using their own dedicated 700 MHz and AWS frequencies.
SpectrumCo, an AWS bidding consortium with Cox, Comcast and Time Warner Cable, picked up 137 licenses in 2006’s Advanced Wireless Services auction (at 1.7/2.1 GHz). SpectrumCo won a total of 137 AWS licenses for $2.37 billion. Comcast’s share was $1.29 billion, followed by Time Warner Cable’s $632.2 million, and Cox’s $248.3 million. (See SpectrumCo Gets Licenses). Cox paid $248.3 million for AWS licenses in 2006, and transfered those licenses out of SpectrumCo and directly to Cox.
Separately, Cox bought 700 MHz spectrum for $304M in 2008. It purchased a mix of Lower A and B block licenses. Major cities covered by those licenses include Las Vegas, Phoenix, and San Diego.
According to Cox Communications Wireless Vice President Stephen Bye, “Our networks will be using our AWS spectrum initially but we are looking to take advantage of our 700 spectrum. It’s a new band and the technology is still in its infancy but we’ll definitely take advantage of that as the ecosystem evolves around 700 MHz”.
“We’re going to be launching with 3G”, said Bye in an interview with Fierce Wireless. “We want to be on a path to get to 4G and minimize that investment to get there.”
Related 700 MHz articles on Dailywireless include; Comcast Goes Mobile with WiMAX, Cable’s Big Play: Mobility, Cox: Pick a Phone. Any Phone, Cox Cable Wireless Plans , Verizon Jumps LTE Rollout, Cox Plans 700MHz Phone Service, AWS: Strike Out for Comcast?, Hearings on 700MHz Auction, T-Mobile Launches AWS in NYC, Free 2155-2175 MHz!, 700MHz: Money Talks, FCC Finalizes Rules on 700MHz: Limited Open Access, No Wholesale Requirement,
