BPL: Only 4,776 Subscribers And falling after the sale of Dallas-area network Tipped by Randy 
I mentioned the other day that broadband over powerlines (BPL) had suffered a serious death blow after a court slapped the FCC's wrist for acting as a cheerleader for the BPL industry -- while ignoring serious problems inherent in the technology. The industry was also hit hard by the sale of a large BPL deployment in Dallas, on which the Associated Press has more. DirecTV had helped finance the deployment, which was supposed to cover some 2 million subscribers. The new owner, Oncor, confirms they have no interest in using the network for broadband. "Our business is delivering electricity, not being an Internet provider or a television provider," an Oncor spokesman tells the AP. The AP notes the latest FCC stats (for whatever they're worth) show that there's 4,776 BPL subscribers in the U.S.
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 | | Well well well..... It looks like everyone has abandoned a doomed technology.
Time shoot this horse and try something else.  | |
|  | RadioDoc58ef2c0Premium,ExMod 2000-03
join:2000-05-11 | Re: Well well well..... Horse? More like a jackass...
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Toolmaster of La Grange. | |
| | | wvcaverPremium
join:2005-04-17
Millersburg, OH | Re: Well well well..... said by RadioDoc:Horse? More like a jackass... HA HA HA HA HA HA could not have said it better my self !!! | |
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| | Stats from 2006 Although I doubt it has changed much I don't think making you headline stats from 2006 is a good idea. | |
| |  KeysCaptPremium,Mod
join:2001-07-11
Keys Exile
kudos:1 | Re: Stats from 2006 If they are in fact still "the latest" and a far cry from the projected 2 million, why not? They are clearly labeled to show their age and serve to show this is in fact a dead horse. | |
| | | | | Re: Stats from 2006 Because there is nothing new here. Everything in the AP story has already been said in the May 2 posting. The only thing different is the number of subscribers which is old news and not even the newest numbers from the FCC | |
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| W1RFI
join:2003-05-12
Burlington, CT | Actually, AP got it wrong. The latest statistics from the FCC are as of the middle of 2007:
»hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/a···06A1.doc
The report is based on mandatory reporting requirements.
In the report, the FCC says that there are 100,900,000 broadband lines of at least 200 kb/s in at least one direction. Of those, 5,420 are BPL. As of mid 2007, BPL enjoys a market share of 0.0054% of the broadband lines in the US.
The total could be a bit higher as of the end of 2007, or now, but not dramatically so.
Utility uses such as meter reading do not count in this total. The industry has been focusing on the utility side of the equation for some time.
Ed Hare, W1RFI@arrl.org
225 Main St
Newington, CT 06111
Tel: 860-594-0318
BPL | |
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| |  mb
join:2000-07-23
Washington, NJ
 ·Verizon Online DSL
 ·Callcentric
| Re: The power utilities need to get real. said by Mr Matt:  The power utilities need to get real and stop with the no new wire concept. They already have the right of ways. All they need to do is install fiber along those right of ways. The power utilities can then provide transport for new services. The only issue could be resistance from the Telephone and Cable service providers. This is the most sensible thing I've ever read about power companys delivering internet service.
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"When will they ever learn? When will they ever learn?"
Pete Seeger 1961
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| | |  n1zukBreak out the checkbookPremium
join:2001-10-24
Malta
kudos:2 | Re: The power utilities need to get real. Yes, as long as you ignore the following opinion:
quote:
The new owner, Oncor, confirms they have no interest in using the network for broadband. "Our business is delivering electricity, not being an Internet provider or a television provider," an Oncor spokesman tells the AP.
Even when you remove the cost of leasing access, the cost of installing and maintaining the 'physical plant' in sparse areas just isn't profitable. If it was, the cable companies would already be there.
But with so few people benefiting from BPL, it really makes no sense what the FCC has been doing these past few years, ignoring and compromising their own rules... 
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New to Forum Life? Click here and learn. | |
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| | | What a freekin bummer?!!?!?! I don't understand any of this. In the rich neighborhoods of Dallas, they already have the fiber to up and down all of the streets. And now Oncor buys this network to "monitor the power grid?" So they are saying that they're going to take milions of dollars of already laid fiber and use it to ping homes to see if they have power?!?!!?
The only thing left to do is pull the the fiber from the street into the house!!! Hell, you can charge the customer for that in the installation!
This just desn't make any sense. Why would Oncor buy it and not AT&T or Verizon and run FIOS or UVerse over it? Something is fishy here.
I'm so sad to hear this. That fiber network was the only chance that I see in the future for competition. The telcos will eventually put the cable companies out of business over the next 10 years. Maybe wireless is the future. | |
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| | Further reinforces that public policy has to be based on... de facto realities on the ground and not on speculation and prediction about what the future might bring. Powell used speculation about bpl becoming a third wire into the home to foster an absurd vision of the actual state of competition to support his dereg agenda. It would be nice if people could remember things like this so that this same tactic doesn't work in the future. | |
|  n2jtx
join:2001-01-13
Glen Head, NY | Just wait... Just wait, 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 is the year of BPL!
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I support the right to keep and arm bears. | |
| | | | Re: Just wait... The 2010's will be the decade of BPL!!! | |
| | |  a333A hot cup of integrals please
join:2007-06-12
Rego Park, NY
 ·Cingular Wireless
| Yay!!! At least people can't blame the Ham Radio 'nutcases' any more.
About time cities put down the BPL kool-aid and get real. Instead of modifying miles of noisy, humming power lines, might as well get WiMax equipment/extend existing power company fiber, either using FTTH or strategically placed 802.11n WiFi hotspots. | |
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The power utilities need to get real.
