As we recently noted, Time Warner Cable is a little behind in terms of DOCSIS 3.0 cable upgrades, and has sold faster 50 Mbps broadband service to just 2,000 users in parts of New York City. However, the company is poised for a fairly quick push into a number of additional markets over the next few weeks. One Time Warner Cable employee familiar with the plans tells Broadband Reports that Time Warner Cable signed up their first DOCSIS 3.0 customer in Buffalo, New York today.

Other markets should be launching in quick succession, so expect a wave of official announcements either this week or next.

Another supposed live-but-unannounced market is Dallas, where users in our forums are the first to note that the service is up and running, and should be live for everyone in the market by the nineteenth of this month (aka late next week). Users interested in the fastest speeds these upgrades offer will of course need to upgrade to a new DOCSIS 3.0-compliant modem.

Users in upgraded markets can sign up for a new 30 Mbps downstream 5 Mbps upstream tier that costs $25 over Time Warner Cable's standard plan (which can vary in price and speed by market depending on competition). Users also have the choice of signing up for a 50 Mbps downstream 5 Mbps upstream tier for $99 a month. That's less expensive than Verizon's 50 Mbps FiOS tier, which costs $140 bundled, or $145 standalone. That $99 price tag is the same for Time Warner Cable whether you bundle additional services or not.

Regional promotional pages have been popping up in Time Warner Cable markets the company plans to upgrade. The carrier has long stated that these upgrades will be "surgical" in nature -- which when translated means markets where Time Warner Cable sees competition from Verizon FiOS or AT&T U-Verse (and that's roughly about a third of Time Warner Cable's market). Those interested should take a look at Time Warner Cable's Wideband FAQ.