Fonix Partners With Duke Power in BPL Trial; Companies Expand Trial to 10,000 to 15,000 Homes, Plan for Mid-2005 Launch MONDAY, DECEMBER 20, 2004 9:00 AM - BusinessWire
FNIX 0.175 +0.025 Enter Symbol: Enter Keyword: ATLANTA, Dec 20, 2004 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Fonix Telecom, a subsidiary of Fonix Corp. (FNIX) that offers next-generation integrated communications services, will be partnering through its subsidiary LecStar Telecom Inc. with Duke Power to test Broadband over Power Line (BPL) technology and market acceptance in a 10,000- to 15,000-home trial. This trial, which will take place in Duke Power's service area in North Carolina and South Carolina, represents an expansion of a 500-home trial currently being conducted by the companies. The trial's specific locations will be determined in the first quarter of 2005.
Fonix Telecom's BPL service, offered through LecStar, allows users to turn any electrical outlet in their home into a gateway to the Internet, simply by plugging in their computer and BPL modem. The company expects the service will be available for businesses and consumers by mid-2005 in select markets.
"Customers are hungry for fast, flexible, cost-effective methods of receiving their voice, data and media," said W. Dale Smith, senior VP and general manager, Fonix Telecom. "This technology delivers on the promise of ubiquitous high-speed Internet and voice services."
"By partnering with Duke Power on this trial," said Michael Britt, VP of Channel Development and BPL project manager, Fonix Telecom. "We get the benefit of Duke's expertise and reputation for quality and leadership in the utility industry, as well as their established customer relationships. Finally, it provides our customers the freedom to choose a plan that meets their needs better than DSL or cable systems."
"The business model we are pursuing is essentially the creation of a wholesale 'pipe' that can be used by service providers, such as Fonix Telecom and others, to provide consumers with another broadband option for their homes and businesses," said Bob Gerardi, Powerline Communications program manager, Duke Power. "We chose Fonix Telecom's subsidiary LecStar to participate in the trial and help bring this exciting technology to market because of their commitment to this technology, their ability to move quickly and their long history of successful collaboration with the utility industry."
As part of the BPL trials, Fonix is continuing to test its Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) via BPL product, an innovative technology that will allow the company to offer voice transmissions over power lines in addition to data and media. This service will be tested by current trial participants and is expected to become available to all customers in the next phase of the trial by mid-2005. Fonix announced tests of this technology earlier this year, making it one of the first companies in the United States to successfully implement the technology.
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