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Cable Technology Feature Article

January 15, 2010

Comcast Donates $1 Million to Haiti Relief, Provides Free Digital Voice Services to Contact Relatives

By Kelly McGuire, TMCnet Editor


Disaster has struck and it’s time to come together as a country to offer support for those in Haiti who have suffered a terrible hardship.
 
Companies all over the world – including right here in the United States – are providing relief to those affected by the 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck residents on a quiet Tuesday afternoon in January.
 
The nation’s largest cable TV and Internet provider, Comcast (News - Alert), just shy of settling a class action lawsuit in Philadalphia and pursuing a rebuttal to the FCC’s (News - Alert) attempt to regulate net neutrality, is doing its best to lend a hand during the crisis situation.  
 
According to reports, the provider announced plans to done over $1 million for disaster relief in Haiti, of which $50,000 is in cash to two charities: the American Red Cross and Telecoms Sans Frontieres, or Telecom without Borders. The rest of the funds will be offered through various types of aid.
 
Telecom without Borders has already sent an emergency team with satellite mobile and fixed communications equipment to Haiti after the quake on Tuesday hit and possibly killed as many as 50,000 individuals.
 
Comcast spokesman, John Demming, said today that, in addition to the financial donation, Comcast is providing digital voice services in the Miami Dade County in hopes that those in the area with family in Haiti can reach out at no cost to contact their loved ones.
 
Demming also told the press that Comcast is offering free air time across its networks, along with production assistance, for earthquake-related public service announcements from the Red Cross and other organizations.

Kelly McGuire is a TMCnet Web editor, covering CRM and workforce technologies, and anchor of its daily TMC Newsroom video broadcast. Kelly also writes about eco-friendly "green" technologies and smart grids, compiling TMCnet's weekly e-Newsletters on those topics, as well as the cable industry. To read more of Kelly's articles, please visit her columnist page.

Edited by Kelly McGuire