BPL Co. Ambient Tries to Stay AfloatThree trials and $343,595 in revenue ( old news - 11:55AM Thursday Jan 26 2006) tags: business · BPLAmbient Corporation has great hope for broadband over powerline (BPL) technology, but since the company went public in 1998, they've only generated $343,595 in revenue. They've been a favorite investment partner of Earthlink, who has doled out four million to the company as they've searched for ways around the incumbent telco and cable company networks. As of 2002, the company was exploring offering broadband over Con Ed's overhead electric distribution system in New York, using a back haul connection supplied by EarthLink. The plan was to offer speeds between 3.5 Mbps and 7 Mbps on low voltage lines (6-12 on medium voltage lines). As of March 2005, just one building was being served. By 2004, the company was busy defending the viability of their product, as critics (the ARRL at the forefront) began to cast a shadow of how viable BPL would be as a third major pipe into the home. Hams began documenting significant interference at the NY trial location in Briarcliff Manor. In 2005, the company struck a deal with SDG&E to start the first BPL trial in California. In late 2005, the company "expanded" its New York trial by offering Earthlink VoIP to customers in the serviced MDU. Earlier this month, Ambient announced a 700 home pilot with an unnamed utility in the Southeast United States. The company today announced they've secured a $1.35 million bridge loan that will "buy us five months or so,” according to president and CEO John Joyce.
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Good for them
@avhlaw.com
| Five months more salary for the employees. I fail to see how they aren't too far gone, and I note they had to leverage their patents and provide warrants for 3MM shares at less than even their current anemic market price in order to hang on for another few months. And other companies, particularly Current and Motorola, are beginning to have bigger successes. Funny how those companies who even took ham radio concerns half seriously are the ones winning in the marketplace. ABTG is still a turkey, and I'll enjoy watching their angel investor lose money. | |
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Karl Bode
News Guy
join:2000-03-02
Host:
Road Runner
PC gaming GAMES
PC gaming Tech
| Re: Five months more salary for the employees. quote:
Funny how those companies who even took ham radio concerns half seriously are the ones winning in the marketplace
Wonder if that will be a legitimate pattern. If so, outfits like Comtek should take heed. Trying to BS hams with hostile press releases that deny interference isn't good for the pocketbook.
quote:
ABTG is still a turkey, and I'll enjoy watching their angel investor lose money.
I already had to delete one post from our Yahoo finance board Ambient spamming friend. I'm sure he's not sleeping well. Judging from the amount of spam he tries to pile in our forums, he must have a lot riding on Ambient. | |
| | 
Middieman
Eschew Obfuscation
join:2001-02-05
Elkins Park, PA
| quote:
Funny how those companies who even took ham radio concerns half seriously are the ones winning in the marketplace.
That is an interesting point isn't it? At least regarding Comtek, I don't think that company and othes help their position by attempting to ignore ham radio and other services.
-=[Middie]=-
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All your base are belong to DSL Reports! | |
| | | | | op
join:2005-07-16
Smyrna, DE
1 edit | In Late 2006 Late 2006 hasn't arrived yet so he must mean in late 2005. I dont know about you but when I check the date it does not say 2007, well at least not yet. I think somebody is a year ahead of themselves. | |
| plattypus1
join:2005-04-08
Riverside, CA | And good riddens! When one puts all of one's eggs in a single basket, the least they could do is make sure there's not a hole at the bottom of it.
An incomptetent company with bad technology is going bankrupt. I guess capitalism does work, eh? | |
| | glidereric
join:2001-12-06
Seattle, WA | Re: And good riddens! Well their technology is massively flawed.
When one examines the bandwidth and interference free characteristics of Fiber it's a No Brainer what someone would invest in.
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guesting
| Re: We don`t need another North American Blackout Remember, utilities in North America lost Billions from the Blackout that involves several states... that`s why we need Broadband over Power Lines to monitor the Health of Power Grids.... If ARRL wants to protect emergency communications, then fight NEXTEL real interference to 911 system... imho | |
| | | | moonpuppy
join:2000-08-21
Glen Burnie, MD
 ·Verizon Online DSL
| Re: We don`t need another North American Blackout said by guesting :
Remember, utilities in North America lost Billions from the Blackout that involves several states... that`s why we need Broadband over Power Lines to monitor the Health of Power Grids.... If ARRL wants to protect emergency communications, then fight NEXTEL real interference to 911 system... imho
Toledo Edison didn't want to spend the money to keep their system in good working order and you think BPL will change that?!?!?
As for the Nextel issue, the HAMs have no allocations in that band so they have no say in how it is run.
Now go pump up the BPL stock so you can break even on your bad investment. | |
| | | | RayW
Premium
join:2001-09-01
Layton, UT
clubs:
·XMission
| said by guesting :
Remember, utilities in North America lost Billions from the Blackout that involves several states... that`s why we need Broadband over Power Lines to monitor the Health of Power Grids....
That can be done without HF and above interference. The bandwidth requirement for monitoring and controlling the grid is very small. The initial idea for "BPL for the masses" came from the use of a form of BPL in some areas for just that purpose. Utah power talks about being able to control our air conditioner power usage using that system to help manage the grid balance.
Some people think the push for "BPL for the masses" is a financial ploy to build it out. After all, if you do a business model and it fails, then not only do you have big write-offs and investor cash but you still have the infrastructure for the monitoring system. But if you try to retrofit, that is out of the stockholder's pockets, and in our current short-term-thinking economic society, that is a no-no.
said by guesting :
If ARRL wants to protect emergency communications, then fight NEXTEL real interference to 911 system... imho ARRL does not have anything to do with that (A for Amateur, not Commercial). 1. 911 is a wired system anyway (at least here) and 2. Emergencies in your case are the normal day-to-day issues, the ARRL is focused on the catastrophic issues where 1. probably is inoperative.
Now the dispatchers do use radio, and in many areas those are going to the 800 MHz trunking systems although we have some areas that still get dispatched with HF, VHF and/or Ham radios due to radio shadows and distance.
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I am not lost, I find myself every time. | |
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guesting
| Re: We don`t need another North American Blackout 911 system and other Emergency spectrum are about to be moved to higher frequency... and they are planning to use better internet system... to not fail again like what happen everytime we have disasters like Hurricanes !!!
We really don`t need hams band anymore aside from having it as a dying hobby...imho !!! | |
| | | | | | | | | | | | RayW
Premium
join:2001-09-01
Layton, UT
clubs:
·XMission
| said by guesting :
911 system and other Emergency spectrum are about to be moved to higher frequency... and they are planning to use better internet system... to not fail again like what happen everytime we have disasters like Hurricanes !!!
We really don`t need hams band anymore aside from having it as a dying hobby...imho !!!
Hi Corporate Troll, Just in case you need some help:
911 is the land line emergency telephone number, you dial it on the telephone sitting on your desk. The only radio involved is when the dispatcher sends someone out to you.
E911 is for Mobile/Cell Phones, it will be on what ever frequency the cell phone is and is only for the public to call for help. Then it goes to said dispatcher and he/she radios for someone to go help you.
Your area may vary, but that is what it is in the areas I deal with.
Oh, and as far as a dying hobby, tell that to the police, fire, sheriff, and city, county, and state emergency coordinators. They are buying ham equipment, putting up repeaters (maintained by hams) and EOCs (and hiring Hams to run them), and getting public spirited Hams involved with the government process. Those people know what really happened in the South, despite the papers saying nothing worked and pointing fingers and yelling blame, and that is why they are spending your tax dollars on Ham related items.
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I am not lost, I find myself every time. | |
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aonymous2
@optonline.net
| Re: We don`t need another North American Blackout BPL is for Smart Grid- this is the main purpose
I like to share some tidbits of this article:
"TXU and CURRENT Communications to Create Nation’s First Multipurpose Smart Grid
Broadband Over Power Line Network to Be Available to Serve Approximately Two Million Texas Homes and Businesses
DALLAS, TX and GERMANTOWN, MD (December 19, 2005) — TXU Electric Delivery, the nation’s sixth largest electric transmission and distribution company and a subsidiary of TXU Corp. and CURRENT Communications Group, LLC, the nation’s leading provider of broadband over power line (BPL) solutions, today announced an agreement to transform TXU Electric Delivery’s power distribution network into the nation’s first broadband-enabled Smart Grid.
CURRENT will design, build and operate the BPL network covering the majority of the TXU Electric Delivery service area, including approximately two million homes and businesses in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and other Texas communities. This modernized grid will dramatically enhance TXU Electric Delivery’s ability to deliver top-decile electric service reliability and provide the potential for additional products and services from retail electric providers that will enable businesses and consumers to manage their electricity usage and costs." | |
| | | | | | | | moonpuppy
join:2000-08-21
Glen Burnie, MD
·Verizon Online DSL
| Article has one issue. How do you deliver the IP to call 911? OOOPSEY!
Also, those cell sites can't last forever on batteries and some parts of New Orleans still don't have any power.
Try again and this time, try to make a coherent argument without cutting and pasting. | |
| | | | | | | | RayW
Premium
join:2001-09-01
Layton, UT
clubs:
·XMission
| Yes, but IP is still over wires in most places unless you have something like Sprint (a neighbor of mine) that starts off as a radio. WiFi with a mobile PC will be interesting to see what they do with that, GPS may not be too useful in many cases..
Also IP more vulnerable than regular POTS, my DSL goes out with the power, my POTS almost never goes out with the power unless they are on the same pole that gets knocked out.
So once again, the need for Ham radio is still there, in certain circumstances.
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I am not lost, I find myself every time. | |
| | | | | | N3EVL
join:2004-12-13
Shrewsbury, MA
| said by guesting :
We really don`t need hams band anymore aside from having it as a dying hobby...imho !!!
Forgive me if I don't buy into your in-depth analysis of the need or lack thereof for amateur radio or "hams band" as you so quaintly put it: I won't be selling my equipment any time soon. You are correct in one respect however: your opinion is indeed humble. | |
| | Ham band guy
join:2005-07-13
Minneapolis, MN
| BPL Co.Ambient tries to stay afloat I'm not too surprised after seeing a report on an investment web site that listed Ambient(abtg) as being on a caution or a not preferred stock,I saw this around Christmas. It also proves points I've made in the past that the broadband marketplace will shake out and the best-strongest will survive(aka Darwin's therories). I feel this "shakeout" is increasing as more advanced technologies are being rolled out ie-FIOS,wireless etc.
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Friends don't let friends use home edition anything! | |
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Smart Grid
@rr.com | Ambient So how many utilities are backing Ambient now?? Quite a few more since the last post on this board. Its only a matter of time before a buyout/takeover of some sort.
Smart Grid is the wave of the future for our antiquated electrical system. | |
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When funds start to dry up; sayanora baby
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