Bloomberg: NYC to Offer Free Broadband to 300,000 Public Housing Residents

Deante Washington, Bloomberg

New York City is partnering with Charter Communications Inc. and Altice USA Inc. to provide free high-speed internet and basic cable TV service to about 300,000 residents of public housing. 

Called “Big Apple Connect,” the program aims to bridge the digital divide between wealthier residents and lower-income people who lack the tools necessary for remote learning, access to health care and job opportunities, city officials said. An estimated 30% to 40% of people who live in buildings run by the New York City Housing Authority lack broadband, according to the cable providers.

“In 2022, in the wealthiest city in the country, no one should go without access to the internet,” Chief Housing Officer Jessica Katz said in a statement. “It is vital to our daily lives, to succeeding in school and in work, and is how we stay connected as a society.”

The city plans to have the service available in more than 200 NYCHA buildings by the end of 2023.

The program differs from a previous short-term promotion by Altice’s Optimum and Charter’s Spectrum that gave New York City students free internet service after the pandemic hit. Some parents said they were duped into signing up for paid subscriptions after the promotion ended.

Under a three-year agreement with the providers, New York will pick up the cost at about $30 per household. The city is in talks with a third major cable TV carrier in the city, Verizon Communications Inc., to join the program.

NYCHA residents enrolled in Big Apple Connect will still be able to use the federal Affordable Connectivity Program benefit to save money on their cell phone bills and provide discount of up to $30 per month toward internet and cellular data service, city officials said.

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