The DSL Threat: U S West Plans 20 More Cities
Jun 8, 1998 (CABLEFAX, Vol. 9, No. 109) -- U S West [USW] announced the second phase of its 40-city DSL rollout with plans to enter 20 more markets by the end of July. Communities in Washington, including Seattle/Olympia, Spokane/Tacoma and Bellingham, will be up by mid-June, says the RBOC. Availability of the service is still limited; only about 30% to 40% of Denver residents, for example, are close enough to a central office to receive it. U S West says that number should rise to 80% by the end of this year as technology advances. The additional rollout shouldn't cause additional concern for cable ops, says Janco Partners analyst Ted Henderson. DSL remains a threat, but cable ops need to stay on their toes and continue rolling out their service. On an apples- for- apples basis, cable modem service still remains the more attractive option at $40 a month for about 1Mbps to 1.5 Mbps, compared to about $120, plus ISP charges, for DSL service at 1Mbps. Residentially priced service for 256K is $40, plus ISP charges. While the service is priced more attractively for businesses, U S West says 60% of its DSL customers are residential, but those may be home-based businesses. Other markets to be launched by July include: Colorado Springs; Ames, IA; Cedar Rapids, IA; Council Bluffs, IA; Des Moines, IA; St. Cloud, MN; Helena, MT; Albuquerque; Las Cruces, NM; Los Alamos, NM; Santa Fe, NM; White Rock, NM; Corvallis, OR; Eugene, OR; Portland/Salem, OR; Sioux Falls, SD; and Cheyenne, WY.
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