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Incumbent local exchange carriers have been pricing their asymmetrical digital subscriber line (ADSL) services at $60 a month - out of reach for residential customers. All that is bound to change with the recent launch of ADSL service priced at $30 a month from Cincinnati Bell.
The Internet service provider's (ISP) fee is extra, but the modem and startup kits are give-aways.
"It is the first (ADSL) case of telcos going after residential subscribers," says Jim Wahl, telecommunications analyst at the Yankee Group, a consultancy in Boston who sees the Bell's offer as ideal for telecommuters, small businesses and high-end users. "You can plug the modem in yourself and (it) is a splitterless ADSL design, so there are no real installation charges. This is quite a different approach to selling the service than what many of the Bells have done."
The Bell's move looks exceedingly smart - the market for ADSL central office equipment alone is expected to grow dramatically through 2002 when will begin to shrink, according to a new study by Allied Business Intelligence (ABI), another consulting group based in Oyster Bay, N.Y. ABI sees the market increasing from $72.1 million in 1998 to $354.1 million in 2000 and $464.6 million in 2002. In 2003, the market is forecast to drop to $396.8 million.
In fairness to other Bell operating companies (BOCs), many of their first-tier services are faster...