Altice USA, which purchased Cablevision in 2016, is beginning to build out its fiber-to-the-home network in Riverhead and the North Fork.
The new fiber-optic network, which is being built across the entire Optimum footprint, will enable multiple gigabit broadband speeds, Altice USA spokesperson Janet Meahan said.
Current broadband speeds in the Optimum network are 400 megabits per second, she said. The fiber optic network will bring speeds of one to 10 gigabits per second, according to the company.
“It will mean vastly improved services and enable more advanced services across the board,” Meahan said.
Altice in late 2016 announced it would embark upon a five-year “fiber-to-the-home” plan for the “entire Optimum footprint.”
The infrastructure for deploying the fiber network is now being built out, she said.
The company, which has a franchise agreement to provide cable television and broadband services in the Town of Riverhead, obtained permission from the town board today to construct fiber-optic infrastructure in town rights-of-way at two locations: near 795 Fresh Pond Avenue in Calverton and on Church Lane south of Sound Avenue, near the Sound Avenue Cemetery.
Altice USA will still need to obtain road opening permits from the Riverhead Superintendent of Highways prior to actual construction and installation.
Meahan could not yet provide a date when customers could expect to be able to access the upgraded capacity, since it’s still in the early stages of deployment, she said.
“When it’s rolled out, there will be an entire awareness campaign to let customers know its available,” Meahan said.
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