Comcast offers low-cost Internet access to seniors in Boston

Comcast Corp. plans to extend its high-speed Internet adoption program to low-income senior citizens in Boston.

The communications giant said Thursday that seniors will be able to join its Internet Essentials program, which provides Internet access for $9.95 a month and the option to buy a subsidized computer for less than $150. A $100,000 grant to local nonprofit Tech Goes Home will also be used to offer seniors digital literacy training in print, online, and in-person.

“Seniors, too, need Internet access at home to break down barriers of isolation and connect them to their friends, family, and caregivers,” David L. Cohen, senior executive vice president and chief diversity officer of Comcast, said in a statement.

Nearly 80,000 low-income Massachusetts residents who qualify through the National School Lunch program and Housing and Urban Development-assisted housing participate in the Internet Essentials program, which launched in 2011.

Boston is the fifth city to offer this opportunity to seniors, who can also sign up for a 10 percent discount on basic cable TV or digital starter cable TV.