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| EMagazine Volume 5 Issue 4 Aug / Sep 2000 |
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All of a sudden, I could see the need for seven or eight phone lines running into the house. I had fallen into the trap of believing the solution of simultaneously moving a herd of elephants through the eye of a needle would be to add more needles, or in this case, phone lines. |
As the increased amount of information and number of options available on the World Wide Web grows, a scenario quickly developed that was often likened to guiding an elephant through the eye of a needle. The problem was that for the normal connected household, the information superhighway was reduced to a footpath by the technology that connects our personal computers to the Internet, "the phone modem".
With the cost of the average Internet-ready PC going down and the work-from-home ethic going up, a new elephant has emerged on the demand side of the needle in the form of households with more than one PC vying for Internet connectivity over a single telephone line.
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I needed Internet access to connect my home office with my corporate office. My daughter, being of the networked generation, was already calling her friends immediately upon her arrival from school. She would gossip with one friend on the voice line while replying online to e-mail senders. My son needed Internet access for purely educational purposes (but spent most of his connected hours playing interactive games). Finally, my wife had discovered surfing the Web without missing a single beat of her phone conversations with friends.
All of a sudden, I could see the need for seven or eight phone lines running into the house. I had fallen into the trap of believing the solution of simultaneously moving a herd of elephants through the eye of a needle would be to add more needles, or in this case, phone lines. But by the time you added the cost of the phone lines and the cost of separate dial-up accounts from the ISP (Internet Service Provider), the total came close to $200 a month (quite an expensive toll to pay for a spin down the Information Superhighway).
To address my personal collision between POTS (plain old telephone service) and a modern family with a busy digital lifestyle, I examined the options and associated cost, hassle, and logistics factors for a practical solution that would satisfy everyone.
Fortunately, a new technology would enable me to replace my analog phone line needles with a digital doorway big enough for both content and demand elephants to pass or even dance through together. It's called a Residential Gateway (RG), which combines the functionality of a router, a multi-line enabler/phone manager, modem and hub in a small "plug-and-play" package. Residential Gateways enable providers to deliver bundled communications services such as voice/video/Internet to multiple phone, fax, entertainment and data devices inside the home or small business over a DSL (Digital Subscriber Line). With an RG that has distributed voice and data all the customer has to do is plug the RG into a phone jack and electrical socket and presto, you're up and running. Other benefits include:
- No provider installation required -you could request the RG to arrive by mail for simple "plug and play" installation. No technician or service appointment required
- Affordability - most likely, the RG will be an additional enhancement subsidized by the service provider at no additional cost to you
- Remote activation, management and diagnostics by the service provider means that your RG can be properly maintained by professionals
- Ability to create a local data network linking multiple computers on a single ISP account
- Greater functionality, such as remote access to a home office PC or network through a secure Web portal
- With new generation RGs, you also can get the benefit of up to four separate phone lines over the existing phone line that feeds into your home
Residential Gateways are what unleash the awesome power of DSL. With DSL, the average phone line's capability and digital capacity are multiplied, and the options for fast and reliable Internet access increase. DSL is just as fast as the corporate connection in the average cubicle.
With spiraling consumer demand for more phone lines, faster connections and lower prices without the hassles of complicated technology, the unique combination of Residential Gateways and DSL allows users to access more advanced website content, send or receive frequent e-mails, and play interactive online video games simultaneously. When these services are delivered through one of the new generation type of RGs, you can do all that and conduct up to four separate phone conversations at the same time.
Service providers have recognized that Residential Gateways/DSL offer competitive advantages with "value-added" services. ISPs, telcos and cable companies are all rising to the occasion. Residential Gateway/DSL access solutions continue to expand throughout major metropolitan areas. Consumers can drive the process by requesting the "consumer-installable DSL" option. If your home's demand for connectivity is like mine was, you'll be glad you did.
Elephants may never forget, but at my house, thanks to RG technology, we can't remember the last time we fought for Internet access or the phone.
About the Author:
Robin Hays is a home and small office consumer first, and an executive leader
at an emerging residential gateway technology provider second. With a special
perspective on the broadband services arena as ShareGate's vice president of
marketing, Hays is leading the charge to offer residential broadband services in
today's skyrocketing small office and home office (SOHO) market. With estimates
predicting the RG market to increase to nearly $8.9 billion by the year 2003, up
from $17 million in 2000, Hays is focused on better promotion of the RG concept
in a young market he believes is destined for meteoric growth.
About ShareGate, Inc.:
ShareGate is the first company to demonstrate a working RG solution to enable
service bundling and distribution of voice and data to multiple destinations
from a single source, and the only company currently developing RG solutions for
four distributed derived voice lines simultaneously with HPNA, ADSL and POTS on
a single copper pair. ShareGate has established strategic partnerships with
several companies to bring to market solutions for DSL, cable, and wireless
media. Consumers can expect a growing number of service providers to offer
ShareGate's DSL Residential Gateway products in early 2001.
