
(ZDNet) – Comcast and Liberty Global have agreed to run trial services sharing broadband networks in 2014.
The cable companies announced the scheme Thursday, saying that the international Wi-Fi access agreement will give some of the firms’ subscribers extended access to each other’s broadband networks in 2015.
A trial is set to start at the end of this year, and if it proves successful, Xfinity Internet and Liberty Global internet customers will be granted access to new Wi-Fi access points in various countries by 2015. Comcast has over three million Xfinity Wi-Fi hotspots in the US, while Liberty Global has the upper hand in Europe — claiming over 2.5 million Wi-Fi spots in countries including Belgium, the Netherlands, Ireland, Poland and Switzerland.
The companies say the deal will provide many of the 11 million Americans visiting Europe and the 12 million Europeans visiting the US a free alternative to roaming, which is often expensive.