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Technology Stocks : Westell WSTL -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Leroyt who wrote (14226)	12/3/1998 11:45:00 AM
From: Skiawal	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 21342

Interesting article on ADSL and Cable...Thanks Miriam cedmagazine.com I really liked this part...<Bell Atlantic's marketing campaign, including a point-of-sale tie-in with CompUSA stores and Compaq Computer Corp., suggests the telco has done a better job of setting up for the battle with cable than other telcos.> <Nothing better illustrates the cautious approach to G.Lite among telcos than Bell Atlantic's strategy, which is pegged to the CAP-based system supplied by Westell Technologies. As the last of the major telcos to launch DSL services and with a heavy emphasis on the consumer market, the carrier might have been expected to exploit the advantages of going with a DMT-based system that would be easily upgradable to G.Lite, or even to hold off a bit so that it could go forward with a pure G.Lite play. Instead, Bell Atlantic will watch developments on the G.Lite front and, when industry support is broad and deep enough, will jump in, officials say. Meanwhile, the carrier is getting its three-tiered "Infospeed" service underway in Washington, D.C., Pittsburgh, Philadel-phia and northern New Jersey, with plans to add several other cities in early '99, including Boston and New York. "By the end of ('98) we will pass close to two million households," says Bell Atlantic retail services group President Bruce Gordon. Although Bell Atlantic is taking several steps beyond what other telcos have done to make ADSL consumer-friendly, including price breaks for customers who give up cable data service for Infospeed, it's clear the telco faces the same fundamental challenges others face with the technology, starting with its coverage limitations and relatively high costs. Infospeed, when packaged with Internet access from Bell Atlantic.net and a customized version of the Snap portal service from the joint venture of CNET and NBC, costs $59.95 per month for access at "up to" 640 kbps, $109.95 for up to 1.6 Mbps access and $189.95 for 7.1 Mbps. During what officials termed its "promotional period," the company will charge $99 for connection and $99 for modems, discounting the latter by 50 percent in cases where the customer is changing out cable data service for Infospeed. The company also said it will waive additional equipment and wiring costs for customers who take the service from Bell Atlantic.net during the promotional period. Bell Atlantic has set up an online on-screen provisioning interface that will tell customers immediately whether they are on a line that qualifies for ADSL, and which types of ADSL they can get, notes Pete Castleton, director for data products. "We think the key piece that differentiates Bell Atlantic's rollout from other telcos is that we have started with a strong foundation that covers all the areas essential to making this a successful consumer service," Castleton says. That foundation includes an ISP partnership program that offers financial incentives to ISPs whose customers stay with Infospeed longer than 60 days. The basic price to the ISP for the 640 kbps service is $39.95. "This is the most comprehensive ADSL announcement we've seen to date," says Yankee Group consultant Craig Driscoll. For example, he says, the Snap portal, or user on-screen gateway, gives Infospeed "the look and feel of a broadband service that can compete head- to-head with broadband cable." And, he adds, Bell Atlantic's marketing campaign, including a point-of-sale tie-in with CompUSA stores and Compaq Computer Corp., suggests the telco has done a better job of setting up for the battle with cable than other telcos.>