It looks like one the most-hated cable companies in the United States is about to join forces with one of the country’s most-hated wireless carriers. We’ve been hearing rumors about Comcast’s expansion into the wireless service market for a while, and now it looks like the company will be doing so through Verizon’s own wireless service thanks to an airwaves deal the two signed a few years ago.
Comcast Corp. is moving closer to introducing a wireless service that would compete with major U.S. carriers. The country’s largest cable company has told Verizon Communications Inc. that it plans to resell Verizon’s wireless service as part of a 2012 airwaves deal, according to two people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because the information isn’t public. Under that agreement, a consortium of cable companies led by Comcast sold nationwide spectrum licenses to Verizon for $3.6 billion and secured the rights to resell its wireless services. Verizon Chief Financial Officer Fran Shammo said Tuesday that cable companies he didn’t name have informed the carrier they now want to execute on that part of the agreement. “Obviously, the industry is moving,” Shammo said during an earnings call Tuesday. “Cable is going to do what they’re going to do, and we’re going to do what we’re going to do.” Comcast would offer a hybrid cellular and Wi-Fi service, using Verizon’s network and Wi-Fi hotspots. The entry of Comcast in the market would come at a time when Verizon and No. 2 carrier AT&T Inc. are already under pressure from smaller rivals like T-Mobile US Inc., which is winning customers by cutting prices and doubling data allotments.
