TWC Picks Up Wi-Fi Pace in NYC

Time Warner Cable is gearing up to expand its Wi-Fi deployment in New York City, announcing Thursday that it will have 10,000 hot-spots deployed there by the end of the year .

TWC said it has already deployed 1,700 public hotspots in Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island, and is on pace to add 1,000 more in Manhattan by mid-July.

Those hot spots can be accessed for free by TWC’s cable modem subs as well as the broadband customers of the “CableWiFi” roaming alliance, which, in addition to TWC, also includes Comcast, Cablevision Systems, Bright House Networks and Cox Communications.

To help to promote the expansion, TWC said it will also open up its 2,700 hotspots in NYC to all-comers during Major League All-Star Week, which runs July 12-16. The game itself will be played July 16 at Citi Field.

“By accessing one of our thousands of hotspots around the City, our customers will enjoy even more value from their TWC Internet subscriptions and avoid pricey cellular data overage charges,” said TWC SVP of corporate development Mike Roudi, in a statement.

A TWC spokeswoman said the MSO is using Wi-Fi gear from Cisco Systems and Ruckus Wireless for the New York City deployment.  TWC is also using Ericsson equipment in some Wi-Fi markets, including Los Angeles.

In addition to NYC and Southern California., Time Warner Cable has also deployed Wi-Fi networks in Hawaii; Charlotte, N.C.; Austin, Texas; and Kansas City. TWC has deployed more than 17,000 Wi-Fi quasi-public hotspots so far, with the vast majority -- more than 12,000 -- installed in California.

MSOs involved in the CableWiFi club have deployed more than 150,000 hotspots so far.