Blonder Tongue Intros MDU Net Access: Single satellite feed can service several buildings with high-speed data

Jim Barthold

Blonder Tongue Laboratories Inc. has introduced technology to help Hughes Network Systems Inc.'s DirecPC deliver Internet services from single DirecPC antennas to subscribers in multiple dwelling units (MDUs).

Blonder Tongue's DPC Link "converts the selectable satellite transponder feed to three of the most common frequencies in the CATV band," said Teri Newton, Blonder Tongue's strategic marketing director. "The signal can be delivered to the customer via fiber optic or coaxial cable, CATV or MATV (Master Antenna TV) distribution."

The rack-mountable DPC Link, which consists of an agile satellite converter matched with individual subscriber upconverters, receives the Hughes satellite services and downlinks the signal to a subscriber upconverter and a DirectPC PCI computer card or USB (universal serial bus) adapter. The DPC Link equipment is independent of individual subscriber selections, regardless of the level of DirecPC service, the company added.

"They'll use the existing distribution and they also have out-of-band conversion," Newton pointed out.

Blonder Tongue sees the technology as a way to enter and service multiple dwellings with a single satellite feed, saving the subscriber the expense of purchasing personal satellite service, the company said.

Headend costs are "under $1,000" including the downconverter and antenna, Newton said. There is then a $50 per unit cost per subscriber to translate the signal, unless the MDU provider uses L band, at which point the signal goes directly to the PC without translation.

Operators also pay between $200 and $350 for the subscriber computer interface piece "but right now Hughes is offering it to the cable operators at no charge," Newton added.

The DirecPC service delivers data down-stream at 400 kilobits per second (Kbps) via a satellite feed with a phone return. Subscribers pay $35 monthly for the satellite reception and $15 for the Hughes Internet Service Provider (ISP).

Newton emphasized that the system beats cable modems systems on start-up costs.

"The headend for a cable modem system is in the $50,000 range and each modem is anywhere from $300 to $450," she said. "With a $50,000 headend cost, you can imagine what it's going to take them to recoup their costs."