An alliance for high-speed networking over existing phones?
Simple, high speed Ethernet for the home?? Where do I sign up???
Now the battle for Internet-to-the-home really heats up...
Especially with the news today that AT&T is buying TCI...
-- Adam
Press Contacts:
Alexander Communications, Inc.
Amanda Berman or Cheryl Murphy
Voice: (415) 923-1660
Fax: (415) 923-9863
aberman@alexandercom.com
cmurphy@alexandercom.com
LEADING TECHNOLOGY COMPANIES JOIN TO DELIVER HIGH-SPEED, AFFORDABLE HOME
NETWORKING SOLUTION VIA TELEPHONE WIRES
Innovative technology helps consumers to easily and simultaneously share
Internet access, computers, peripherals and telephone services
Digital Living Room Conference, Laguna Hills, CA, June 22, 1998 -- The
leading computing and communications companies today announced the
formation of an alliance to help deliver easy-to-use, affordable,
high-speed home networking solutions over existing telephone wires. The
group, Home Phoneline Networking Alliance (HomePNA), includes founding
members 3Com, AMD, AT&T Wireless, Compaq, Epigram, Hewlett-Packard
Company, IBM, Intel, Lucent Technologies, Rockwell Semiconductor Systems
and Tut Systems. HomePNA's immediate mission is to accelerate the
development and marketplace introduction of a home networking
specification with member products expected to be available by the end
of 1998.
"In the business world, the real power of the PC revolution was
unleashed only when PCs were networked together. The goal of HomePNA is
to extend that revolution into the home," said Rod Schrock, vice
president and general manager Consumer Products Group, Compaq Computer
Corporation. "Since most households don't have a system administrator, a
successful home networking specification has to be simple, foolproof,
and inexpensive. The members of HomePNA have stepped up to that
challenge."
According to Dataquest, more than 15 million homes in the U.S. have two
or more PCs and analysts expect this number to double over the next two
years. Nearly one in two home PCs access the Internet regularly
according to Ziff-Davis Market Intelligence. Jupiter Communications
projects that in addition to PCs, more than 15 million information
appliance products will be purchased in the next five years. The need to
share Internet access, digital information and computing resources among
PCs and other information appliances will spark consumer demand for a
home networking solution.
"This Alliance has really done its homework, bringing together industry
leaders representing all facets of the home PC and networking space,"
said John Coons, director/principal analyst, Dataquest. "As a result,
consumers can implement solutions quickly and with confidence that these
solutions will still be around tomorrow."
Benefits of home phoneline-based networks
1. A simple, cost-effective and proven solution for consumers that
requires no costly or disruptive rewiring of the home, the phoneline
network utilizes existing telephone wiring to connect computers and
devices without interrupting phone service.
2. Home phoneline networking will work with existing Internet access
technologies, such as V.90, ADSL or cable modems.
3. Key applications enabled by home networking include shared Internet
access, shared data and applications, shared peripherals (printers,
scanners, modems, digital cameras, storage devices, etc.) and
multi-player gaming.
HomePNA will develop specification for creation of industry-wide
standards
1. The HomePNA has adopted innovative and proven networking technology
from Tut Systems that allows home networks to operate over common
telephone wires at 1 Mbit/s.
2. The HomePNA will promote this technology as an open reference
specification for all vendors to implement and will publish these
specifications in the third quarter of 1998.
The HomePNA is also working together to develop future specifications --
already under development -- for even higher speed home phoneline
networks. Building upon the 1 Mbit/s network specification, the second
generation of high speed home networks is targeted at 10 Mbit/s and more
and is expected to be available mid 1999. It will be scalable, backward
compatible, and interoperable, allowing for simultaneous communication
of voice, video and data.
To promote the proliferation of these solutions, HomePNA will provide
field certification and interoperability test suites and will serve as a
forum for technological and consumer issues. Certified products will be
eligible to use the HomePNA brand logo and marketing programs. HomePNA
will work closely with industry standards committees, such as the
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and the
International Telecommunications Union (ITU) for submission and adoption
of the specifications as the industry standard.
Companies interested in adopting the home phoneline networking
specifications for use in their own home networking offerings are
encouraged to join the Alliance. Additional information about the
Alliance is available at http://www.homepna.org/
About the Home Phoneline Networking Alliance
The Home Phoneline Networking Alliance is an association of
industry-leading companies working together to help ensure adoption of a
single, unified phoneline networking industry standard and rapidly bring
to market a range of interoperable home networking solutions.
Founding Members include: 3Com, AMD, AT&T Wireless, Compaq, Epigram,
Hewlett-Packard Company, IBM, Intel, Lucent Technologies, Rockwell
Semiconductor Systems and Tut Systems.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Press Contacts:
3Com:
Brian Johnson
(408)326-1962
brian_d_johnson@3com.com
AMD:
Drew Prairie
(408)749-4581
drew.prairie@amd.com
AT&T Wireless:
Karl J. Korsmo
(425)702-2710
karl.korsmo@attws.com
Kenneth Woo
(425)828-1349
kenneth.woo@attws.com
Compaq:
Holly Chambers
Miller/Shandwick Technologies
(281)405-2627
hchambers@miller.shandwick.com
Epigram:
Adam Stein
(408)720-3030
astein@epigram.com
Hewlett-Packard:
Ray Aldrich
(408) 343-5627
ray_aldrich@hp.com
IBM:
Andrew Hayden
(914)766-3716
haydena@us.ibm.com
Intel:
Jeanne Talbot
(503) 264-8788
jeanne.m.talbot@intel.com
Lucent Technologies:
Charlie Hartley
(908)508-8226
cjhartley@lucent.com
Rockwell Semiconductor Systems:
Eileen Algaze
eileen.algaze@rss.rockwell.com
Tut Systems:
Matt Taylor and Craig Stouffer
(510)682-6510
cstouffer@tutsys.com
mtaylor@tutsys.com
Sterling Communications:
Marianne O'Connor or Kevin Pedraja
(408)441-4100
moc@sterlingpr.com
kmp@sterlingpr.com
----
adam@cs.caltech.edu
Koans are supposed to be triggers which, though they do not contain
enough information in themselves to impart enlightenment, may possibly
be sufficient to unlock the mechanisms inside one's mind that lead to
enlightenment.
-- Douglas Hofstadter, Godel Escher Bach