Manassas, a city of about 36,000 people, turned an 18-month field trial into a commercial offering. It's one of four utilities in the area that have rolled out commercial broadband over power lines (BPL )this year, according to a report from Network World.
While 2004 didn't turn into quite the rush to embrace BPL services that industry observers predicted last year, there continues to be momentum around the technology. Providers say BPL throughput can range from 300K to 2M bit/sec, about the same as cable and DSL, but that they can provide the service at a less-expensive rate.
Manassas, for example, offers its BPL for $26.95 per month with no installation fee and no long-term contract. Similar service through cable connections go for as much as $55 per month without a bundled package that includes cable television service. DSL averages about $30 per month.
The primary benefit of BPL, however, is that it can be delivered over existing infrastructure: any site with power outlets can be hooked up to a high-speed broadband connection. That has attracted the attention of high-level officials, including FCC Chairman Michael Powell and President George Bush, who has called for nationwide broadband access by 2007.
"One great opportunity [to get broadband to more consumers] is to spread broadband throughout America via our power lines," Bush said during a speech at the Department of Commerce in June.
But hurdles remain — such as setting standards and opposition from groups such as amateur radio enthusiasts who say the technology causes too much radio interference. Analysts are also lukewarm about BPL's prospects for taking significant market share from DSL and cable. They note that cable and DSL have matured to provide more than a single "big pipe," bundling other services into their offerings. That's something BPL also will have to do.
Nevertheless, the continuing maturity of BPL and a growing number of positive experiences with field trials, along with government support, is helping spur interest.
Last year, for example, there were about a dozen utilities conducting field trials, but no commercial deployments. This year, in addition to the four commercial ventures, the number of field trials has increased to more than 36.
ISPs that quietly watched the trials last year are now getting into the game. EarthLink, for example, is partnering with Progress Energy to deliver BPL in a field trial outside of Raleigh, N.C. EarthLink also has been working with Consolidated Edison in New York to deliver BPL on a trial basis for about two years. Last month, AT&T announced it was working with Pacific Gas and Electric to conduct a trial with about 100 residents in Menlo Park, Calif.
A growing number of utilities are exploring broadband over power line opportunities.
Research firm Chartwell, which tracks the energy industry says the percentage of utilities — gas, water and electric — planning or considering broadband deployments rose from 6 percent in 2000 to 20 percent in 2003. Of 100 electric utilities Chartwell surveyed, a third said they were using, planning or considering broadband last year.
