We work to create connections. On any given day that can mean installing a powerful, secure internet experience into a home, business, or community space, answering a customer’s questions at an Xfinity Store, expanding our fiber-rich network or supporting an organization, family, or small business to help create digital and social equity. Throughout 2021 here in Beltway, which includes Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C. and parts of Delaware and West Virginia, we have continued to focus on delivering the products and services our customers love, while ensuring access for those who need it most.
Our network is the backbone of all that we offer, and we have continued to increase reliability and capacity to innovate, not just to meet current needs, but to stay well ahead of future demand. For instance, to support the ever-increasing number of connected devices in our customers’ homes, this year we introduced advanced Wi-Fi technology capable of delivering the fastest speeds over Wi-Fi. We expanded our in-home network to parts of Ocean Pines, MD, Delaware and Montgomery County, MD, and to businesses in parts of Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, D.C. and West Virginia to extend high-performance internet and other advanced offerings to residential and business customers along the Beltway.
These investments have allowed us to keep our customers entertained and connected at home, work and on the go. Throughout the year, we added value on our platforms with the launches of additional streaming services like Disney+ and ESPN+ on X1 and Flex. We enhanced our top-rated Xfinity Mobile service, providing even more options for customers to get a great wireless experience and still save. And, we extended that same great service to our small business customers with the new Comcast Business Mobile. To provide a place where customers can interact with our products and services, and also get advice from our experts, we opened several new Xfinity Stores in Waldorf, MD, Baltimore, MD, Woodbridge, VA, and Christiansburg, VA.
We also introduced a free rewards program, Xfinity Rewards, making special perks, discounts, and experiences available to eligible Xfinity customers across the area. In celebration of this launch and the premier of Illumination’s new animated film Sing 2 (now in theaters), Xfinity Rewards members will be able to enjoy access to a variety of special movie-related perks and discounts through December 31, including:
- Opportunity to rent Illumination’s original 2016 blockbuster Sing, for only $1
- Free 30-day access to Stingray Karaoke which delivers the ultimate karaoke experience on X1 or Flex with nearly 20,000 songs including a special playlist from 2016’s Sing and this holiday season’s Sing 2
- Tickets to Sing 2 in theaters for less with a Fandango promo code
- Access to Sing 2 activity sheets for young viewers
Xfinity Rewards truly speaks to our mission to connect people to more of what they love, while giving back and saying thanks to our customers. The entire Xfinity Rewards experience continues to be shaped and inspired by our customers and what they want – including meaningful rewards rooted in experiences. We’ve brought together the best of Comcast NBCUniversal to deliver just that with perks like $1 Movie Rentals, enhanced Mobile benefits, and access to once-in-a-lifetime VIP experiences like a trip to The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, or tickets to The Voice, just to name a few.
While we focused on providing the best products, services, and experience for our customers, we also continued to apply our resources to support our communities, working to create positive change and a more equitable society. We built upon our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion with initiatives like Comcast RISE, the multi-year, multi-faceted initiative that supports small businesses owned by people of color. Of the 6,700 small businesses nationwide that Comcast RISE has provided support to, 464 of them are based in Beltway. In 2021, we also announced 100 recipients of the Comcast RISE Investment Fund in Washington, D.C. including The Princess Mhoon Dance Institute, A Vivid Age LLC, A Beautiful Closet LLC and more.
This year was the 10th anniversary of Comcast’s Internet Essentials program, the nation’s largest and most comprehensive broadband adoption effort for low-income households, which has connected a cumulative total of 298,000 households – or 1.2 million people – since 2011. We marked this milestone with the latest donation of $200K in grants and 3,000 laptops to Baltimore City Organizations focused on education, workforce development and digital equity. We now deliver speeds up to 50 Mbps through Internet Essentials and have expanded the program eligibility to include all Federal Pell Grant recipients within our service area, enabling even more students to stay connected as they continue to pursue degrees at colleges, universities, and technical schools.
As part of our ongoing commitment to helping students and adults get online, participate in distance learning or remote work, do homework or look for and apply for jobs, we equipped 92 community spaces in the Beltway Region with WiFi-connected Lift Zones this year including the YMCA Greenleigh Learning Cottage, SAFE, DC Dream Center and Sasha Bruce Youthwork. Along with Comcast RISE, Internet Essentials and other initiatives, Lift Zones are part of Project UP, our comprehensive initiative to advance digital equity and help build a future of Unlimited Possibilities, backed by a $1 billion commitment to reach 50 million people.
And, to make it easier for families to get connected to the internet, Comcast is supporting the Emergency Broadband Benefit (EBB). This temporary benefit program from the federal government, designed to help qualified low-income households with a credit of up to $50 per month toward their internet service until the program’s funding runs out, gives new and existing customers the opportunity to apply the credit to all tiers of Xfinity Internet service, including Internet Essentials.
None of our initiatives this year would have been possible without the talents and focus of our employees who have helped to bring our company’s offerings and values to life each day.
We’re grateful to be a part of the homes, businesses, and communities throughout Beltway, and we’re looking forward to continuing our relationships in the year to come. For more of Comcast NBCUniversal’s 2021 news, visit corporate.comcast.com/press.
