Internet Tv Planned - Excite Home - Brief Article

Tag: Free Web TV

Expanding into interactive TV market, Excite@Home is gearing up to introduce its new broadband service for TV screens, featuring full Internet access, in selected cable markets this summer and fall. Company is planning 2-tier service that would compete against interactive TV offerings from America Online, Microsoft's WebTV Networks, OpenTV, U S West, WorldGate Communications, others. Excite@Home co-owners AT&T and Cox Communications have committed to rolling out service to undisclosed number of cable households, and venture is negotiating with co-owner Comcast and others.

Jeff Huber, Excite@Home engineering and product development vp, said Excite@Home would focus on marketing interactive TV applications to its growing base of high-speed PC subscribers , now 1.1 million and climbing at rate of one new customer every 2 seconds. With aid of more than 20 MSO distribution partners, Excite@Home also intends to pitch service to its total coverage area of 72 million homes passed, 60 million in U.S., rest in Australia, Germany, Japan, Netherlands. Company executives believe they can sign up at least 20-25% of those homes as interactive TV subscribers over several years.

Planned @Home TV service -- encompassing full Internet access, personalized news, weather and sports, e-mail, enhanced TV screen overlays, electronic commerce, interactive programming, wireless keyboard and other advanced features -- is likely to cost digital cable subscribers extra $15 per month, Huber said. Unlike WebTV, WorldGate, U S West and planned services from AOL and OpenTV, @Home TV is designed for advanced digital cable boxes that set-top makers are just beginning to ship. List includes General Instrument's DCT-5000 and Scientific-Atlanta's Explorer 6000 boxes, as well as advanced boxes from Pace and others. Excite@Home say broadband service will distinguish itself from competitors through its fast transmission speeds, greater capacity for graphics and multimedia displays, emphasis on TV video and audio and 'always-on' nature.