http://pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review...l/s_355993.html
Basic power lines soon will be used to carry Internet service to two Monroeville neighborhoods under a project that Duquesne Light is launching along with a Pittsburgh startup firm.
The venture, known as Duquesne Broadband, will carry high-speed Internet service over power lines starting Aug. 8 at prices lower than, or comparable to, Internet service offered by telephone companies, cable companies and other providers that already are engaged in a vigorous competition for customers.
Broadband over power lines isn't in many markets yet. \"But it is about to explode,\" said Alan Shark, managing director of the Power Line Communications Association in Washington, D.C.
Pilot programs or full service are running in about 30 mid-size cities nationwide, including Cincinnati.
The Duquesne Broadband project targets two areas with a total of 2,800 households, plus businesses. Depending on consumer reaction, the Pittsburgh utility hopes to expand the network after six to nine months.
Duquesne Light distributes electricity to 585,000 homes and businesses across Allegheny and Beaver counties.
Standard service will cost $19.95 per month for download and upload speeds of 500 kilobits per second. Premium service will cost $29.95 for speeds of 3 megabits per second.
Fred Solomon of Allegheny Power, the Greensburg-based utility with about 690,000 residential customers in Pennsylvania, said the company's Allegheny Communications Connect unit has looked into broadband over power lines.
\"But there are some technical and regulatory issues that would have to be resolved before it is ever deployed,\" he said. \"For now, we are focused on our core generation and delivery businesses.\"
Electricity and Internet service can run over the same power lines because they operate at different frequencies.
Duquesne Broadband, however, will deliver its Internet service from power lines to home computers and laptops using a wireless networking system, said spokesman Joe Balaban. It decided to offer wireless Internet after studying nationwide consumer trends -- the popularity of wireless fidelity, or wi-fi zones, and growing sales of laptop computers versus desktops, Balaban said.
The Duquesne Broadband system essentially connects the higher speed fiber-optic cables with the electric lines. The signal from the fiber-optic network transfers to the power system via contact points, and a converter then extracts the encrypted signal from the power line and broadcasts it via an antenna -- to wireless network cards in a desktop computer or a wireless network card in a laptop.
System users won't have to spend $100 or more for wireless routers and other equipment in order to use portable computers anywhere in the house, or even on the back porch, Balaban said.
And within the service area, a customer could walk to a neighbor's house with a laptop and use the Internet.
DQE Communications Network Services, a Duquesne Light subsidiary, already had a fiber-optic network that extended through the utility's territory. BPL Global, a small high-tech firm founded here in November, looked at the technology and equipment needed, and the two formed a partnership.
\"This is mobility. This is not like the other services over broadband,\" said Keith Schaefer, chief executive of BPL Global, which has 15 full-time employees at its headquarters Downtown.
BPL Global also is helping to develop broadband over power line projects in Thailand, China, India and other countries, he said. Duquesne Light's project, though, is BPL's first system to offer service.
Duquesne Light has fewer than 25 employees involved in the broadband venture, Balaban said. The company didn't disclose its investment in the project.
The Monroeville neighborhoods were chosen for the kickoff partly because of their mix of houses, apartment complexes and businesses. Apartment buildings need special antennae that send the Internet signal to a panel box.
Because the power lines already are in place, expanding the Internet service to new areas could take only days as the technology is installed on the lines. \"There's no infrastructure rebuilding, no trenching or digging or stringing cable,\" Balaban said.
Residents and small businesses in the targeted areas will get fliers soon, and can register in advance for the service at www.duquesnebroadband.com. They will get one month free, plus equipment and a package of services including multiple e-mail accounts, anti-virus software and other protections.
The company also wants to hear from potential customers outside the pilot area, in order to target other communities for expansion.[/b]
Basic power lines soon will be used to carry Internet service to two Monroeville neighborhoods under a project that Duquesne Light is launching along with a Pittsburgh startup firm.
The venture, known as Duquesne Broadband, will carry high-speed Internet service over power lines starting Aug. 8 at prices lower than, or comparable to, Internet service offered by telephone companies, cable companies and other providers that already are engaged in a vigorous competition for customers.
Broadband over power lines isn't in many markets yet. \"But it is about to explode,\" said Alan Shark, managing director of the Power Line Communications Association in Washington, D.C.
Pilot programs or full service are running in about 30 mid-size cities nationwide, including Cincinnati.
The Duquesne Broadband project targets two areas with a total of 2,800 households, plus businesses. Depending on consumer reaction, the Pittsburgh utility hopes to expand the network after six to nine months.
Duquesne Light distributes electricity to 585,000 homes and businesses across Allegheny and Beaver counties.
Standard service will cost $19.95 per month for download and upload speeds of 500 kilobits per second. Premium service will cost $29.95 for speeds of 3 megabits per second.
Fred Solomon of Allegheny Power, the Greensburg-based utility with about 690,000 residential customers in Pennsylvania, said the company's Allegheny Communications Connect unit has looked into broadband over power lines.
\"But there are some technical and regulatory issues that would have to be resolved before it is ever deployed,\" he said. \"For now, we are focused on our core generation and delivery businesses.\"
Electricity and Internet service can run over the same power lines because they operate at different frequencies.
Duquesne Broadband, however, will deliver its Internet service from power lines to home computers and laptops using a wireless networking system, said spokesman Joe Balaban. It decided to offer wireless Internet after studying nationwide consumer trends -- the popularity of wireless fidelity, or wi-fi zones, and growing sales of laptop computers versus desktops, Balaban said.
The Duquesne Broadband system essentially connects the higher speed fiber-optic cables with the electric lines. The signal from the fiber-optic network transfers to the power system via contact points, and a converter then extracts the encrypted signal from the power line and broadcasts it via an antenna -- to wireless network cards in a desktop computer or a wireless network card in a laptop.
System users won't have to spend $100 or more for wireless routers and other equipment in order to use portable computers anywhere in the house, or even on the back porch, Balaban said.
And within the service area, a customer could walk to a neighbor's house with a laptop and use the Internet.
DQE Communications Network Services, a Duquesne Light subsidiary, already had a fiber-optic network that extended through the utility's territory. BPL Global, a small high-tech firm founded here in November, looked at the technology and equipment needed, and the two formed a partnership.
\"This is mobility. This is not like the other services over broadband,\" said Keith Schaefer, chief executive of BPL Global, which has 15 full-time employees at its headquarters Downtown.
BPL Global also is helping to develop broadband over power line projects in Thailand, China, India and other countries, he said. Duquesne Light's project, though, is BPL's first system to offer service.
Duquesne Light has fewer than 25 employees involved in the broadband venture, Balaban said. The company didn't disclose its investment in the project.
The Monroeville neighborhoods were chosen for the kickoff partly because of their mix of houses, apartment complexes and businesses. Apartment buildings need special antennae that send the Internet signal to a panel box.
Because the power lines already are in place, expanding the Internet service to new areas could take only days as the technology is installed on the lines. \"There's no infrastructure rebuilding, no trenching or digging or stringing cable,\" Balaban said.
Residents and small businesses in the targeted areas will get fliers soon, and can register in advance for the service at www.duquesnebroadband.com. They will get one month free, plus equipment and a package of services including multiple e-mail accounts, anti-virus software and other protections.
The company also wants to hear from potential customers outside the pilot area, in order to target other communities for expansion.[/b]
