Netflix wants to make sure that its streaming service is affordable to everyone, and it wants to do that with the help of an initiative called the Fiber internet package.
The plan would enable people in low-income communities in the U.S. and Canada to get internet and television at the same time.
Netflix announced Thursday it would start rolling out the program this summer in areas where it’s already available, and will be expanding it to other parts of the country in the coming weeks.
“We believe that this program, which we’re calling ‘Fiber internet,’ is the most significant and transformative way we can ensure that all people in our country, everywhere, can get access to high-quality internet at an affordable price,” Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos said in a statement.
The company said it plans to start rolling the program out to areas where its already available in the next few weeks.
The program will offer internet speeds of 100 megabits per second, but is expected to expand to a faster speed of 1,000 megabets per second in the future.
The move is part of Netflix’s larger push to offer internet to low- and middle-income households.
The service is also aimed at women and children, and some of the companies that will be getting the service include Time Warner Cable, Cox Communications, Charter Communications, AT&T, Comcast, Charter Internet, and Comcast XFINITY.
Netflix also announced a partnership with tech start-ups like Dropbox and Spotify, among others, and announced a “fiberhood” program aimed at low-wage workers who can’t afford broadband.
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said that as a result of this initiative, the company plans to give back to communities where it has been unable to offer a service.
The Fiber internet plan is expected start rolling later this summer.
The goal is to get the average internet speed to 10 megabit per second by the end of the year, but Netflix said it could increase the speeds if there is enough demand.
“Netflix believes that internet access should be accessible to everyone who needs it, no matter their income level or the geographic location of their homes,” Sarandes said in the statement.
Netflix is also hoping to be able to expand the program to areas that are not covered by existing networks, which would allow the company to offer service at lower prices to those people.
For the moment, the plan is only available in places that are already part of the fiber internet rollout, but Sarandys said that could change.
Netflix’s plan is similar to a program called Lifeline, which lets people who have been without internet access receive a free credit card and internet service.
Netflix has said that Lifeline will continue to expand in areas that have been underserved by the internet.