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Get Broadband Net Access From Compaq

Compaq is teaming with Hughes to wire Presarios for satellite Net access.

By Tom Spring, PCWorld   

In partnership with Hughes Network Systems, the parent company of DirecPC, Compaq will let customers order DirectPC satellite Internet access for custom-configured PCs through in-store kiosks and its Web site. Service will be available anywhere in the continental United States starting in mid-May. Users get download speeds of up to 400 kbps; information sent upstream, however, travels over regular telephone lines at 33.6 kbps.

Compaq says new Presario buyers can purchase hardware and software for satellite access to the Net for $349. A one-year service contract earns a $100 rebate from Hughes, bringing the cost to $249. The package includes a USB satellite modem and a 22-by-33-inch Internet-only satellite dish receiver.

The service completes Compaq's "triple play" strategy for offering high-speed Net services. Compaq already sells PCs with cable and Digital Subscriber Line modems, and is working with carriers on easy, high-speed Internet access for consumers.

Broadband Demand

Eighty percent of consumers surveyed are interested in high-speed Internet access, according to Compaq's research. But by the end of this year, only about half of U.S. homes will be able to get broadband Net access using cable or DSL modems, Hughes says.

A big attraction of satellite access is that it can be installed in places cable and DSL can't reach, says Paul Gaske, senior vice president and general manager of DirecPC. Satellite's biggest shortcoming is its inability to support two-way high-speed communications, ruling out applications such as video conferencing.

"We believe the ease of use of the USB satellite modem and the cost are going to be key enablers of this technology," says John Stautner, marketing director for Internet services in Compaq's consumer group.

Subscriptions to the DirecPC satellite service are sold separately through Hughes, and are available at three levels. Monthly service fees start at $29 per month for 25 hours of online service on the Executive Plan. The Family Plan costs $49 for 100 hours and the Office Surfer plan costs $129 for 200 hours.

The package prices do not include satellite dish installation, which costs between $100 and $200, Gaske says.

The broadband market has yet to mature, and has only recently started to heat up. Analysts expect the number of high-speed Net surfers to jump this year from about 600,000 to 1.2 million. By 2002, around 12 million users will be surfing the Net at high speeds, according to International Data Corporation.