Named “Freewheel”, the service will take advantage of the 1.1 million Wifi hot spots Cablevision has deployed in its greater New York service area since 2007.
According to Cablevision, this marks the first time that a US cable operator has offered such a service. It aims to cater to users who are downloading large quantities of data on their mobile phones using Wifi.
The cable company will offer its broadband customers an unlimited Wifi voice, data and text plan for $9.95 a month. Non-Cablevision customers will pay $29.95 a month. Cablevision will first market Freewheel in the New York area, before rolling it out on a nationwide basis at a later date.
At launch, Freewheel will work with only one phone – the Motorola Moto G – which Cablevision will sell for $99.95. The service will later be made available on other devices through an app.
