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Wireless has offered prepaid services for years
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But it’s rare for fixed broadband providers to offer prepaid
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Comcast is also rolling its prepaid offerings under its “NOW” branding
Comcast today surprised with a suite of prepaid products that includes wireless, fixed broadband, Wi-Fi and streaming TV, all under the new Comcast “NOW” brand.
Wireless has offered prepaid mobile plans for years. These plans have typically been targeted to lower-income people; they don’t require good credit scores (since they’re prepaid); and they can easily be switched on and off.
But prepaid has not been widely offered in the fixed broadband world. Fixed broadband requires a connection into the home, and it requires customer premises equipment (CPE). So perhaps most broadband providers have felt it’s more of a commitment on their part, and they want a credit score before they roll a truck.
Comcast is one of a few providers that has offered a prepaid broadband plan — Comcast’s has been called Xfinity Prepaid. But a Comcast spokesman today told Fierce, “We’ll be focused on NOW as our brand in the prepaid internet space.”
The spokesman explained that customers who sign up for NOW Internet will receive a self-installation kit that includes a Comcast gateway. The gateway must be plugged into an existing Comcast connection in their home. And if the home does not have a connection port, then Comcast will roll a truck — at no cost — to install the connection. The service is only available to people in Comcast’s footprint.
Once the gateway is plugged in, the customer can activate the broadband service via an app. And with prepaid, they’ll have the option to pause or discontinue the service whenever they want.
NOW Internet customers will be able to choose between two prepaid options: 100 Mbps for $30 per month, or 200 Mbps for $45 per month. Each tier includes unlimited data.
Comcast says that NOW will complement its longtime low-income broadband options, branded as "Internet Essentials."
Wireless
Comcast already offers a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) product that rides on Verizon’s wireless network. As of the fourth quarter 2023, Comcast counted about 6.5 million wireless lines.
But with today’s news, Comcast will offer NOW Mobile as a prepaid option. NOW Mobile will provide unlimited 5G data, talk and text for $25 per line and will seamlessly connect customers to more than 23 million Xfinity Wi-Fi hotspots.
Wi-Fi
Speaking of Wi-Fi, Comcast is also allowing non-Comcast customers to access Xfinity Wi-Fi hotspots under the new NOW WiFi Pass brand. It will give customers unlimited access to the 23 million Xfinity WiFi hotspots for $20 for 30 days.
The spokesperson said Xfinity Internet customers already have complementary access to Xfinity’s hotspots, which they can access by inputting their credentials. But now, non-Xfinity Internet customers can purchase NOW Wi-Fi Pass by inputting their payment information.
NOW TV
The final product in the new prepaid suite is NOW TV, a streaming service that includes live and on-demand programming from 40+ networks, free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels, and Peacock Premium for $20 per month.
Similar to NOW WiFi Pass, customers who want NOW TV must be Xfinity Internet customers.
The spokesman said, “NOW TV is a streaming package of content that we put together that is accessible on any device that you can use to stream video. You could use a Roku, you could use your phone. Any device that streams and supports our Xfinity stream app, you can use that to access NOW TV.”
Of course, NOW TV can also be used on the Xumo Stream Box, which was created by a Comcast-Charter joint venture.
RELATED: Comcast starts offering Xumo Stream Box to Xfinity broadband subs
The Xumo Stream Box is a 4K streaming device that aggregates search and discovery for content from live, on-demand, streaming, FASTs and pre-loaded apps within one experience.
Initial customer trials for NOW Internet and NOW Mobile have already begun in Hartford-New Haven, Connecticut; Houston, and Miami, with a full-scale national launch across all Comcast service areas expected in the coming weeks.
NOW TV and WiFi Pass are available today, everywhere Comcast provides service.