Comcast is offering low-cost internet service to Miami public housing residents starting this month. Subscriptions are $10 a month, but when dealing with cable companies, there’s always fine print.
As Comcast vice president David Cohen told a crowd in Overtown, the goal of the Internet Essentials program is straightforward: “Close the digital divide, and drive broadband adoption in low-income communities. In a 21st century economy, you simply have to be connected to the internet.”
The question is what “connected” means. Critics have pushed Comcast to offer faster service to its low-income customers, but the low-cost sevice being offered is still less than half the speed the FCC considers the benchmark for broadband.
Then, there’s eligibility. “It’s really simple,” Cohen says. “If you live in Miami-Dade public housing, you are eligible to participate in Internet Essentials.”
Unless, that is, you’re already a Comcast customer or you fell behind and had your account suspended. That describes Michelle DeJesus, who was a Comcast customer for nine years. “I owe them money,” she says, “because I couldn’t pay for it. It was too much.” But she says she applied for the new service anyway, hoping a for a little leniency.
