FILE PHOTO: Small toy figures with laptops and smartphones are seen in front of displayed Comcast logo, in this illustration taken December 5, 2021. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
(Reuters) -Comcast and Charter Communications said on Tuesday they would establish a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) that will use T-Mobile's 5G network to serve wireless business customers, with plans to launch next year.
Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
As competition in broadband and pay TV intensifies, Comcast and Charter's new MVNO deal with T-Mobile underscores how the cable giants are seeking new growth opportunities by expanding into the business wireless market.
The initiative will focus exclusively on providing wholesale mobile connectivity to Charter's and Comcast's business customers.
The companies added that their existing long-term MVNO partnership would continue to support residential and current business customers.
An MVNO is a mobile service provider that delivers phone services by leasing network capacity from established wireless carriers, rather than owning its own network infrastructure.
Prominent MVNOs such as Tracfone, Mint Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile collectively cater to tens of millions of U.S. customers, offering cost-effective prepaid and no-contract plans.
(Reporting by Kritika Lamba in Bengaluru; Editing by Mohammed Safi Shamsi)
