AT&T urges DSL customers to switch to its new Internet Air FWA offer

The fixed wireless access (FWA) product that AT&T CEO John Stankey talked about during the company’s earnings call on Thursday is called AT&T Internet Air, which sells for $55/month.

AT&T is currently offering Internet Air to a limited set of copper-based customers in places where AT&T has wireless coverage and capacity to deliver a “high-quality” customer experience, a spokesperson told Fierce.

There will be places where a fixed wireless service will enable a better experience for customers than their existing copper-based service can provide, according to AT&T. A video on the Air website, first spotted by Light Reading, encourages DSL customers to upgrade to AT&T Internet Air for a faster and more secure home internet service.

AT&T is offering the trademarked “All-Fi” Hub as an all-in-one device that powers the Wi-Fi coverage inside a customer’s home; AT&T’s mid-band 5G spectrum gets the signal to the home.

AT&T isn’t disclosing the manufacturer of the hub.  (AT&T screenshot)

Customers can manage the home Wi-Fi network through an app. AT&T isn’t disclosing the manufacturer of the hub, the cost of which is included in the monthly price, according to the spokesperson.

Eligible customers will receive direct mail and email that instructs how to migrate to AT&T Internet Air from their current copper-based service, the spokesperson said. 

Stankey first mentioned the product during AT&T’s earnings call in January and talked about it quite a bit on Thursday’s Q1 earnings call. He said they’re in the process of AT&T scaling it “so that we make sure that we do it the right way.”

Customers do not need to be an AT&T wireless customer in order to get the FWA service. According to the website, there are no data caps or overage fees.  

“As of March 2023, Internet Air delivers typical download speeds between 40-140 Mbps. These speeds are based off of current internal data and are very dependent upon the connection the All-Fi Hub can achieve with the AT&T wireless network. We will continue to update these speeds as we monitor results,” AT&T states in the FAQ section of the Air website.

Clearly, AT&T is not as bullish on 5G FWA as T-Mobile and Verizon, but it’s no stranger to fixed wireless. AT&T EVP Chris Sambar told Fierce last February that it was offering FWA services, both a point-to-point and a point-to-multipoint version, and that it had more than 500,000 FWA subscribers.

Over five years ago, AT&T was experimenting with its Project AirGig to use millimeter wave signals guided by power lines to deliver internet services.