Broadband Central Announces Coming Availability of High-Speed Internet Access Throughout Utah as Financial Sponsor Reserves Balance of Utah's "Blue Zones"
Coverage and service expected throughout 85 percent of the state by August 2003
DRAPER, Utah - May 14, 2003 -Broadband Central, an industry leader and manufacturer of 802.11 fixed-wireless technologies, today announced it has entered into a profit-sharing agreement with an undisclosed private sponsor that will allow the company to provide affordable, high-speed Internet access to 85 percent of the state's residents by August 2003.
After selling 200 "Blue Zone" sponsorships in Utah since November 2002 (a one-mile diameter exclusive coverage area), Broadband Central has now awarded an exclusive contract for the balance of the 142 remaining Blue Zones in Utah to one of its first Blue Zone sponsors. This individual previously sponsored 102 Blue Zones within Utah north of Salt Lake City between Bountiful and North Ogden.
"As of today, Broadband Central has sold out all of its Utah Blue Zones and we are now focused on a statewide infrastructure deployment that we expect to complete by August of this year," said Tali J. Haleua, president and chief executive officer of Broadband Central. "As a result, Broadband Central will utilize its leading-edge, fixed-wireless 802.11 WiFi (Wireless Fidelity) technologies to become one of the first companies in the U.S. to enable community-wide 'hotspots.' This means that the vast majority of Utahns will soon be able to have high-speed access to the Internet at very affordable prices."
Broadband Central began offering broadband Internet access to Utah residents in early 2003 at month-to-month subscriptions as low as $19.95 through its Blue Zone program. To offer this service, Broadband Central deploys its proprietary 22-inch diameter WiFi cell sites in one-mile diameter Blue Zones, with each device utilizing circular polarization antennas and advanced radio transceivers developed by the company. At each customer location, Broadband Central then installs a corresponding eight-inch in diameter smart antenna and Ethernet device to provide "always on" - yet secure - high-speed Internet access. The infrastructure is also managed and monitored by the company's proprietary enterprise management system.
When the company completes the deployment of its 342 Blue Zones within Utah, Broadband Central will have more than 340 miles of footprint coverage within the state. This will make the company the largest broadband Internet service provider in Utah, with access available from Logan in the north to St. George in the south.
Unlike other wireless Internet service providers (WISPs), the company concentrates its wireless 802.11 signals to a one-mile diameter per cell site to assure reliable Quality of Service (QoS) connections, customer-carrying capacity, and compliance with FCC regulations that limit the wattage per wireless radio and hence signal strength. Broadband Central is one of the only WiFi focused companies that utilizes the various 802.11 standards (the 5.8GHz 802.11a standard, as well as the 2.4GHz 802.11b and 802.11g standards) to provide a robust, secure and scalable wireless infrastructure.
"By incorporating 802.11 a, b, and g standards into our product designs, we increase network capacity and allow more users to connect to the Internet through each Blue Zone access point," said Randy Conklin, director of Network Operations. "Our smart antenna technology reduces multi-path interference and utilizes spectrum better, enabling up to 750 simultaneous logons per Blue Zone."
Broadband Central's entry-level monthly price point for high-speed Internet access is $19.95 for synchronous digital connectivity at 128 Kilobits per second (Kbps). Ten times the speed of the fastest dialup connection, this is comparable to the speeds of ISDN (Integrated Services Digital Network), but is dramatically lower in cost than ISDN accounts. For $29.95 per month, subscribers can double their connection speed to 256Kbps, comparable to DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) speeds. At $39.95 per month, a subscriber can get cable modem speeds of 512Kbps, while a $49.95 per month subscription will allow residential connection speeds of between 512Kbps and up to 1 Megabit per second or more. (Note: Typical high-speed broadband services start at $50 per month and higher, both throughout Utah and around the country.) In stark contrast to other fixed wireless providers, none of the packages require contractual commitments or large investments in upfront equipment purchases.
"Our in-house call center is handling up to 250 new subscriptions per day, which will multiply with the more than 180 zones going live within the next 90 days," said Christine Payne, director of Customer Service at Broadband Central. "We're literally signing up more new subscriptions each day than we can currently install, but we're quickly building our installation crews to match the almost overwhelming demand for our services."
For more information about Broadband Central, visit
http://www.broadbandcentral.us
or call 886-549-4100.
About Broadband Central
Since its formation in November 2002, Broadband Central has become one of the largest wireless Internet service providers (WISPs) in Utah. A new industry leader in 802.11 fixed-wireless technologies, the company brings affordable high-speed Internet connectivity to communities that lack widespread broadband access through its Blue Zone wireless network. With a unique cooperative business model and its proprietary technologies in place, the company is positioned to become one of the leading WISPs in the United States.
MEDIA CONTACTS:
David Politis, Politis Communications, 801-523-3730(wk), 801-556-8184(cell),
dpolitis@politis.com
or Katie Hoshino, Politis Communications, 801-523-3730,
khoshino@politis.com
or Curtis Gasser, Politis Communications, 801-523-3730,
cgasser@politis.com
| Forums:
