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Technology Stocks : Aware, Inc. - Hot or cold IPO? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: czycz who wrote (3642)	5/20/1998 1:46:00 PM
From: Jay Lowe	Respond to of 9236

Nice ... extract below. A small company named Aware Inc. (NASDAQ: AWRE) in Bedford, Massachusetts, has already developed firmware for a DSL-Lite chip. The technology has been licensed by Lucent Technologies, who will produce DSL-Lite modem chip-sets. This means DSL-Lite modems should be appearing soon. You plug your DSL-Lite modem directly into the wall and then plug both your phone and the PC into the modem. Then, just turn it on. This development is critical as it will allow the individual consumer to simply call and order an ADSL line on one of their existing phone lines in their house and then plug in the computer. Although this technology limits the download speed to 1.5 Mbps, it is still more than 25 times faster than a 56.6K modem. There are disadvantages to the DSL technology, however. The biggest is that you must be within 3 miles of a phone company central office. For densely populated areas, this may not be a problem, however, on the outskirts of the suburbs, DSL lines may not be available, unless the DSL provider installs well located repeaters. A second disadvantage is the DSL technology is not universally standardized. Actual implementation varies by the provider. From a practical point of view the only drawback is that this limits the type of modems that you must use to those which are compatible with your provider. Pricing of DSL services varies widely. US West offers ADSL-Lite in tiered pricing, based upon the actual speed offered. For speeds of up to 256Kbps, a DSL line costs about $40 month. Full ADSL service with speeds up to 7 Mbps costs between $120 and $800 per month. GTE offers DSL-Lite (at 680 Kbps) service on a limited basis in California for $125/month. However, DSL technologies are much cheaper in other places. Optimum Communications in Tampa, Florida is offering 3.2 Mbps ADSL and 1.2 Mbps HDSL for $99/month. NETinc, in Canada, offers a full 7 Mbps implementation ADSL in Hamilton, Ontario for only $50/month for residences and $200/month for businesses. It is likely that DSL services will decline sharply in price over the next twelve months as more and more providers roll out the service.