Mediacom prepares for mobile launch

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Mediacom is testing its new mobile service in anticipation of a commercial launch in the coming weeks

Mediacom Communications has confirmed that its long-anticipated mobile service will soon be rolled out across its 22-state footprint. The company has been “testing the product and the activation process” by providing service to employees in anticipation of a commercial launch in the coming weeks.

In June 2022, the company’s Chairman, CEO, and Founder Rocco Commisso confirmed that Mediacom was “actively evaluating whether a compelling business case” could be made for a mobile offering.

Mediacom Mobile was developed in partnership with Reach, a mobile virtual network enabler (MVNE) which can work with AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon. Astound Broadband and WOW! both have mobile services powered by Reach, offered over T-Mobile’s network.

The National Content & Technology Cooperative (NCTC) has an MVNO agreement with AT&T, under which several operators have launched mobile services. As a member of NCTC, Mediacom could have used that agreement to launch mobile, but they opted for a custom, flexible solution. At present, Mediacom said it does not have permission to announce its MVNO partner.

Tapan Dandnaik, Mediacom’s SVP of operations, product strategy, and consumer experience, told CableFAX that the company will initially offer an unlimited plan started at $40/month and a by-the-Gig plan from $15 for 1 gigabyte of data.

Initially, Mediacom will not offer stand-alone mobile service. At launch, mobile will be available for home broadband, home phone, or pay-TV customers, while stand-alone service will be considered at a later date.

Mediacom plans to work with an external partner to offer a variety of devices and financing options. However, Dandnaik noted that they may not be able to offer some of the latest devices, such as iPhone 14 or 15, at launch.

Employees will be key to Mediacom Mobile’s customer acquisition strategy. The company’s agents and technicians are “really good at letting people know what sort of service we have,” Dandnaik said. “Every time our tech goes out to someone’s house, they see a product and they say, ‘oh, you have a mobile product. What’s that about?’ and our techs are really good at communications. That’s why we wanted to get employees engaged and give them first dibs of the product … I think our employees will be the first to go out there and communicate that every time they go out on a truck roll or a trouble call.”

Mediacom Mobile is expected to launch for customers in early June.