Hughes Network Systems is betting its DirecDuo product will appeal to info-entertainment junkies jonesing for bigger bandwidth. The concept is simple: Ubiquitous satellite-delivered digital video and high-speed data with one 21-inch "pizza-sized" dish pointed at two different satellites.
Until now, customers of Hughes' DirecTV video service product had to purchase an entirely separate dish to receive its sister product, DirecPC Turbo Internet, which touts 400 Kbps downstream data speeds. But with the unveiling this week of DirecDuo, the company has created an all-in-one service it hopes will give it some early leverage for bandwidth-hungry consumers.
The stakes are high. Already cable-TV companies are bundling cable-modem services into their video offerings in select markets and gathering reams of marketing data in preparation for a more aggressive push to mass markets by next year. In addition, telephone companies are moving to perfect xDSL (digital subscriber line) technologies that tout data rates as high as 6 Mbps. And in the longer term, a new generation of "multimedia" Ka-band satellite services are looming on the horizon and being backed by giants such as Motorola Global Communications, Loral Space & Communications, Alcatel Alsthom of France, and of course Teledesic Corp., which is backed by cell-phone pioneer Craig McCaw and the ever-present Microsoft chairman, Bill Gates.
So with the markets for video-data mixtures starting to form from the primordial ooze of early adoptopia, Hughes hasn't wasted any time. Its DirecDuo service will be pricey, however. Hughes said the entire DirecDuo package - including the 21-inch dish, a 16-bit PC card, Microsoft Windows 95-based software, and one of three grades of Hughes' digital satellite receivers - will run you about US$1,000 if you're a newcomer. And even the discounts Hughes is offering to its current DirecTV and DirecPC customers to upgrade to DirecDuo don't amount to much: Installation of DirecDuo will cost $599 if you're already a DirecTV subscriber, and $599-$699 if you're a DirecPC subscriber who wants access to DirecDuo's video services.
But Hughes insists that ease of use, convenience, and value will prevail over price concerns.
Hughes has also adopted an interesting service pricing plan that's focused both on time of usage, desired data speeds, and bandwidth consumption. Its "Moon Surfer" plan costs $39.95 per month for 400-Kbps access from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. weekdays, and all day on weekends, and then 80 cents per minute for usage at all other times. Hughes also will offer a scaled-down "Moon Surfer II" plan for $19.95 that cuts speeds to 200 Kbps. And of course the company will offer a pricey "Sun Surfer" plan costing $129.95 per month for usage between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. on weekdays, and 60 cents per minute for usage at other times.
