On Command's trial will include the Expresso MDU system to provide hotel guests with access to the Internet at speeds of up to 1 megabit per second over the hotel's existing phone lines. Tut's technology is being used in conjunction with ATCOM/INFO's IPORT Internet access system, a software solution which provides guests with "plug and play," high-speed connectivity for their laptops.
The first phase of the On Command market trials include 3,000 guest rooms and meeting space at seven full-service Marriott and Renaissance hotels in the United States. Market trials are expected to continue at the test properties during the first half of 1999.
Expresso MDU is the first "single box" access concentrator solution to enable the cost-effective provision of high-speed Internet access and data services for hotels, as well as tenants of apartment buildings, dormitories and other multi-dwelling units (MDU's). Expresso MDU incorporates Tut's popular HomeRun (TM) home networking and LongRun technology to deliver data at a speed of 1 megabit per second over existing telephone wires without interruption of phone services.
"A great number of business travelers and convention attendees choose a hotel based on its ability to deliver office-like conveniences. Increasingly high on that list of amenities is affordable, high-speed Internet access," said Cheryl Haines, On Command's Director of Internet Services. "On Command selected Tut's Expresso MDU system as an alternative technology solution for testing during our high-speed connectivity market trials because its performance is reliable and it uses the existing phone wires in the property. Our technology package will provide hotels an affordable service to offer their guests that saves time and increases productivity."
The Expresso MDU installation is designed to sit in the basement or wiring closet of a hotel, apartment building, or dormitory, and deliver secure, high-speed Internet access to individual units within the building. Because it utilizes Tut's HomeRun home networking technology, the Expresso MDU system connects every phone jack within an installation and allows end users with multiple PCs to share Internet connections. HomeRun also creates a private LAN within each apartment, making it possible to share files and peripherals and even to play multi-player games.
