Gary: p-email me, U S WEST Announces the Nation's First Internet-Based Enhanced TV Service With Telephony Related Items
March 1, 1999 -- Imagine using your TV to
check email messages between your favorite
sitcoms, or view caller ID right on your TV
screen before answering the phone during a
crucial plot twist. U S WEST and Network
Computer, Inc. (NCI) are teaming up to
introduce U S WEST @TV, -- an innovative
integration of telephone, television and Internet
services. U S WEST @TV customers will send
and receive email, place and answer telephone
calls, surf channels and the Web -- or surf the
Web and TV channels at the same time -- using
high speed-DSL or dial-up connections on their
televisions.
U S WEST is the first telephone company in the
United States to announce plans for expanding
Internet access to non-PC platforms. Its service
will reach the millions of consumers who have
yet to connect to the Internet because they do
not own a personal computer. U S WEST will
trial U S WEST @TV in selected metro areas
mid-year and begin launching the service
throughout its 14 state region in late 1999.
Today's announcement adds a major player in
the U.S. telecommunications market to NCI's
growing list of network operator customers in
Europe and Asia.
U S WEST customers will use a television
set-top box equipped with a speakerphone and
NCI software to receive and make telephone
calls and access Internet-based features. Some
of these features include programming guides,
electronic commerce, news and electronic mail.
In addition to access over conventional
connections, U S WEST's advanced network
will provide support for high-speed XDSL,
VDSL and ADSL -- technologies that use
existing copper-wire networks, offering data
transmission speeds up to 200 times faster than
dial up connections.
"U S WEST has always been a pioneer in digital
services and advanced networks," said Mitchell
Kertzman, President and CEO of Network
Computer, Inc. "By delivering the first
television service that combines the Internet,
telephony and entertainment, U S WEST will
help shape the emerging enhanced television
market in the United States."
"With U S WEST @TV, households can enjoy
the benefits of being connected without having
to purchase a PC," said Eric Bozich, Vice
President, Internet and Applications, U S WEST
!NTERPRISE. "Catching the local news on TV
or picking up the phone are part of peoples'
daily routine. We are aiming to make Web tone
as common as dial tone; the launch of U S
WEST @TV moves us closer to this goal."
U S WEST chose NCI's software technology
based on the company's open business model
and strong technology offering. On the client
side, NCI TV Navigator software offers support
for integrated telephony and enhanced
television allowing U S WEST customers to
display Internet content and applications while
watching television and the ability to make and
receive telephone calls. The platform provides
the support required for both high-speed DSL
and dial-up connections. U S WEST will use
NCI Connect ISP Suite server software to
manage the set-top boxes, provide security, and
administer the network. Both NCI TV Navigator
and NCI Connect enables U S WEST to
customize and brand its own unique service,
while retaining a relationship with its customers.
U S WEST offers a range of telephony, Internet
and data services to 25 million customers over
14 western states. U S WEST plans to attract
additional customers through its U S WEST
@TV service. Merging telephony features with
television viewing will allow the company to
increase revenue by tapping options from its
existing service portfolio such as caller ID and
three way calling.
U S WEST becomes the latest network operator
in an impressive list of companies worldwide to
adopt NCI's software for deploying information
appliances. To date, NCI has announced
relationships with the three of the largest cable
companies in the UK: Telewest
Communications, Cable and Wireless
Communications, and NTL Communications;
Belgium's national telecommunications carrier,
Belgacom; and five of the leading cable
companies and ISPs in Japan.
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