President and as well as supervisor wiener from San Francisco and executive director for San Francisco sticking aging and Adult Services as well aaron leo Program Manager of sf connected and camtc the director of network and the executive Directors CommunityLiving Campaign and jerold board member yes, a big rounds ever applause for everyone taking their special time for oozing our special celebration were collins avenue e kicking off the fifth year of internet an internet seekers is one of the lowcost broadband that is happening in the entire country as a journalist reporting from this community in the San Francisco bay area were 14 are 15 and a half years of getting up early in the middle of the night ive seen the role of extension the internet how to comes to play in our day to day work i remember people used to get their news from the newspaper i know in the bay area although were the Technology Center of the worlds we have many that are not connected introduce the internet that is hard to minimum im also the mother the triplets 3 the babies yeah, thats something i celebrity every single day thats lucky a lot i consider myself lucky i binge bring that up their 6 years old and those kids with theyre homework and how to connect the teachers to the medical officers and it shows the needs and evolution what their grouping with naturally my son can teach about google and whatnot it is hard to believe this so many not connected because mayor the cost of service or the cost of devices you know get on the interjects or lack of training so they have some Adult LiteracyTraining Programs as well but i really 7, 8, 9 to highlight one individual that made such an Important Mission to insure that comcast does it part to incur the families not connected hard to believe to the power the forget it is my pleasure to introduce the president of the Comcast Corporation tom. clapping . So thanks virtual laura for the record i was up roughly the same time you were and watched you this morning i check out our nbc faucets but thank you for joining us here this morning and it is great to be back in San Francisco to talk about the internet essentials over the past 4 years ive been here many times to talk about this program this is my third time with a laurie appreciate our continued dedication to this program so im delighted today to give you a status update and talk about a few exciting announcements to like the San Francisco giants winning the world series title bay area i should be an honory citizen im a riechlt lifetime giants fan i inherited through any fathered that as a San Francisco giants fan for the first time in the history of the program the state of california has edged out there under to be the number one state in the country for internet essential sign United Parcel service clapping. so more than 70 thousand families or more than 2 hazmat and 80 low income californians are connected to the internet as a result of internet essentials in the green bay area we have more 23 thousand families or 90,000 low income residents who have been connected introduce this program so congratulations to all of you who help to make that happen and if i can ill not introduce everybody that was introduced but a special thanks to hanging who drives this program from the prospective of comcast and hanging perceptive to our leadership not only of that bringing but it is a pleasure to come out and see you today so thank you hanging and the team clapping. nationally in just four years weve connected more than 5 hundred thousand families within 2 hundred low income americans many for the first time in their lives that put prospective around that 2 Million People is larger than the population of 96 of the hundred largest cities in america and in fact, the double the size of the entire population of City Government and larger in an the population of 14 difference states in america were clearly beginning to make an impact in closing the digital defied ive talked about 3 announcements i want to reference them first of all, we have begun doubted the internet serves so we started this program at 1 and a half meg to 3 to 5 and now to 10 and were doing that at no Additional Charge to existing and new customers of internet essentials second we also have announced that effective males were providing a free wifi routerer to all internet essential customers youll have the ability to assess your Internet Service at home clapping. there wifi. For existing customers all have to you do all the tollfree number were send you a routerer and new customersblast will get the modem no charge for the routerer no mobile charging no contract a Service Charge if you need help there are a few things in life that are really free, free wifi as part of your service clapping. and so third and this is a little bit complicated let me take a minute one of the goals to make it easy for people to sign up for the service most families that have children eligible for the Lunch Program is that we choose that we have to verify that eligibility and thats a bit of a cumbersome so a while going ago we constituted a rule if your child gos to a school where 80 percent of the kids are eligible to participate in a low income well say theyre eligible for our program last year, we reduced it to 70 percent so if youre at a city hall 80 percent of the kids are eligible for the free Lunch Program your eligible for the essentially of not eligible for the Lunch Program weve lowered it to 50 percent 20 thousand schools in the comcast footprint in this country where ever we can student in that school a eligible to participated in the program regardless of them themselves are eligible for that the National School almost program instead of a clumsy Third Party Verification all you have to do is proof give us a copy of a report card a Class Schedule a letter from the principle inviting you back to school well take anything that says you go to that school well count that as a qualification for eligibility under the program so thats this is all part of commitment to maintain the momentum and a continue to sign people up im proud personally and everyone in the company this would not have happened without the support of literally thousands of nonprofits governmental, library, faith based on Community Partners who have joined arm and arm with us to make that program such a success one the commitments to our partners has been we want their input both this program what is working not working, how do we make it better and easier once 24 program got traction the number one thing a everywhere heard from the nonprofit partners would you be willing to expand the eligibility of the Program Beyond the families with School Age Children for those you have by way of thank you to all the consumers of this center for joining us today but those who wonder why were standing in a Senior Center to talk about a program connecting children and low income families with School Aged Children to the internet our patience is about to the awarded the number one population is whether we consider expanding the guilty to low income seniors that is a complicate population what weve decided to do and what weve decided to side launch a handful of programs to standing extends those to a low income population and the city of San Francisco is one of the pilots thats what were announcing today clapping. over the last decade Senior Citizens or low income have adapted broadband at a particular low rate Carbon Dioxide to research only thirty thousand seniors have broadband assess at home 82 percent of seniors with incomes above 70 thousand theres is where in the wooektd but have access to the internet at home 60 percentage point Digital Divides were step up to the plate that to low income Senior Citizens ill remind everyone all around the cry that is still to the a complete understanding the number one barrier to broadband option is not the cost of the Internet Service it is not even the cost of the equipment or the lack of the equipment those are factors but the number one barrier to broadband adaptation is a bufshlth of digital literary and relevancy people without the internet dont understand the importance or or relevant they are afraid of it dont know how to use a computer those issues are acute among Senior Citizens other pew research concluded 18 percent of seniors surveyed will feel comfortable using the internet on their own while 77 perris said theyll need anyones hope to assess the internet so what we know from your 4 years of experience is that having a press conference and issuing a press release and making highspeed available is not going to close the Digital Divide among the seniors we need to create a Digital Training Program which were going to side in in conjunction with a new web of nonprofit partners and governmental partners so your model quite frankly is in San Francisco question partnered about selfhelp for the elderly to ether training close for seniors that Work Together in our comcast Workers Program in florida the other Pilot Program weve announced for a lot of seniors in palm beach there are a lot of low income seniors in the county we had a meeting with the faucets i recently met with the president of that local urban league and with a number of seniors that participated in a Digital LiteracyTraining Program we put together with that urban league the president s said teaching the seniors to use the internet is like teaching a new language in twauk the seniors i learned something in a powerful way through providing Digital Literacy training and computer assess and computers to those seniors weve opened a new window in your world and enabled them to connect to their friends and Service Provides and families in. Way they never imagined would be possible and it is its different than children who quite frankly know the internet better than their parents do and understand the power of the intersected in low income senior population is a population that we are literally opening a new visit to the number one issue to elderly is isolation of seniors our ability to use the internet to reduce that isolation and maintain connectivity it going to do more in my view to impact the quality of life for low income seniors citizens then imagine we can provide as a solution to the problems of seminar isolation so because i do work for a Video Company we have produced a short video staring some of our local partners in Palm Beach County id like to show you to get a first hand sense from the seniors about the power of the internet for a low income senior population. Keyword. Come on. For seniors to have access to the internet is essential without that their left behind and this community in west florida many people are haitian and jamaicans it costs them nothing you are to have internet. I use my Digital Connect for friends and families and i have a friend in jamaica i think it is great you, you hear about the internet because most computation is done by internet now i remember when i used to write letters or send cards we dont do that anywhere. When it comes to seniors and the internet there their r all afraid like a giant monster it is really not. Im leon to go on the internet i was totally grntd im learning to lose the fair market price ill get all around to use it if i had the internet i could side lots of things to keep me win my home and even pay my bills and lots of things if i had the internet that is more than i ever thought it means so much to me. It changes everyone not just seniors and kids it can change all lives comcast brings that is where he cant two their home at a minimal cost it is about chief Financial Officer their lives. So clapping. i have to tell you talking to this group of seniors po who literally 6 months before i met them never touched a computer and have hearing what we were doing with the computer and with Internet Service in their homes as impactful a personal experience as any thoughts incredible experiences ive had talking to parents and their children about access to the internet one of the greatest enemies i was talking to the structure how are those women doing he said mr. Cohen theyre doing great in fact ive asking them to be trainers for any neck class of seniors and the look the smile on those womens faces the happiness and the realization they actually had progressed far enough theyll be able to teach their friends and colleagues how to use is internet was priceless this is part you talk about an unintended consequence of Digital Literacy training the sense ever work those women could help to bring the same opening of the world to their friends and anothers in the community that had been brought to them was amazing were incredibly excited to work with our friends and partners in San Francisco on this pilot i want to thank all the elected officials your nonprofit partners especially want to thank the mayor katie and please appreciated our being here your acting in ac an acting mayor capacity the mayor and i have known each other for a long time we choose San Francisco because of the marries dedication to closing the Digital Divide one of the few marries in the country focusing on the low income seniors working with the mayor and supervisors, with the department of angling and the robust nonprofits that focus on the Senior Community i have no dough San Francisco will be the ultimate Pilot Project for us it will show how we can make that work and better and how we can role it out to the rest of the country over time so thank you all thanks for joining us i looked forward as i threaten ill look forward to reporting on the success of this program the bay area is a spectacular place to roll out the program and many more years of success thank you. clapping thank you. Thank you, mr. Coning i think weve heard that before what happens in San Francisco so goes the rest of the country so today, were joined by that and leader of the beautiful city and county of San Francisco david mention her worked on a number of issues for this quality of life please please join me in welcoming district 4 supervisor katie tang. Thank you, thank you very much everyone and of course i want to on behalf of mayor ed lee that couldnt be here he would have loved to thank comcast in rolling out our second pilot not United States in San Francisco but i know sitting at the table many of the nonprofit leaders and Community Leaders as well ann hes son her phone the department of the aging and Adult Services and selfhelp for the elderly theyve been trying to allow companies to be able to come in and better serve our Senior Community and the populations that do not have access to internet so i know how important that is having growing up in a household where my family gjtd to america i went yesterday to my parents house my fabricates showed me a game he download i cant believe that all the things the wealth of the information and the Services Available for the seniors and how important that all of us learn again, i want to thank comcast and youve bench working hard and we can close the Digital Divide. speaking foreign language. thank you. clapping . Thank you acting supervisor tang for being us to mark that special occasion im delighted to announce the supervisor that advocates for the seniors on behalf of providing did Digital Literacy to seniors supervisor christensen clapping. hi julie overwhelm to put you to work. speaking foreign language. good morning. speaking foreign language. good morning. Im happy to be at lady shaws and thank you, annie for hosting us here today, im very happy to see the former assembly me that man david chiu good morning david it was when david was supervisor i first became familiar with some of the programs to open up technology to the seniors im glad to have him here and welcome to the acting mayor and supervisor wiener. speaking foreig