In an unprecedented show of collaboration this past Monday, Bright House Networks, Cablevision, Comcast, Cox Communications, and Time Warner Cable revealed that they will be working together to allow subscribers to their individual high-speed Internet programs access to one another’s WiFi networks. In the coming months, all of the providers will be converting their self-branded hotspots to CableWiFi, which a customer of any of these five companies can access using the regular log-in ID and password from his or her normal service provider.
Cablevision and Bright House Networks have already begun upholding their end of the bargain, meaning it won’t be long before your friends from out-of-state can use their smartphones when they come to visit you without wasting any of their data limits. As Verizon and the nation’s other heavy hitting phone carriers continue to impose such limits, CableWiFi could prove a vital method of avoiding unwanted hassles and costly penalties for transferring too much data over your 3G or 4G network of choice.
While Optimum getting the ball rolling on this project will be a great asset to those coming to visit Long Island, this partnership will probably prove more useful to residents of the island as the rest of the cable companies do their part in uniting their wireless infrastructures. Indeed, over 50,000 hotspots will be open between the Tri-State area, Tampa, Orlando, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia. With these out-of-market companies working together, you’ll still be able to use your tablet or laptop with ease should you head down to Florida to visit family or make a business trip out to California.
Do you travel out of state regularly? Tell us how you’ll enjoy your mobile devices’ new found freedom on the Long Island Lounge.