RCN to Launch 1-Gig in Philadelphia Area

RCN Corp. will beat Comcast to the punch in the Philadelphia area with a 1-Gig (downstream) residential broadband product that uses DOCSIS 3.1, Philly.com first reported.

RCN COO Chris Fenger told the pub that the competitive overbuilder will introduce the offering on Thursday for $69.99 per month, alongside a $15 rental fee for the new D3.1 modem.

RCN confirmed that the initial launch will target its Delaware County areas, including Clifton Heights, Darby, Drexel Hill, Upper Darby and Yeadon.  The operator noted that it is also launching a 330 Mbps offering in Lehigh Valley.

Comcast recently announced it will soon expand the reach of a gigabit service that utilizes DOCSIS 3.1 in Colorado, Kansas City, Oregon, Washington, Knoxville, and California, ut has not said when it will debut that service in the Philly area. In the meantime, Comcast does offer a pricier, symmetrical 2-Gig residential service in the Philly area that uses FTTP technology.

RCN has already introduced uncapped, D3.1-based 1-Gig service in New York, Chicago and Washington, D.C. RCN is also offering it for $69.99 per month for 12 months, but hasn’t announced how the price will change following that period.

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