Copper Mountain Introduces CopperPowered Hotel Initiative to Deliver Cost-effective Always-on or Usage-based Broadband Access to Hotel Guests
PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Open Coalition for Hotel Industry Debuts with Broad Support from Atreus Systems Corporation; Nomadix, Inc.; and Viator Networks, Inc.
Copper Mountain Networks, Inc.,
The CopperPowered Hotel initiative addresses the needs of business travelers for high-speed access by ensuring end-to-end interoperability between Property Management Systems (PMS), Service Selection Gateways, DSL concentrators, various end-user access devices, and guests' laptops. The initiative also enables service providers to offer flat-rate or usage-based charges and to bill guests using existing hotel billing systems. By facilitating the bundling of hardware and software solutions for ISPs serving the hospitality industry, the CopperPowered Hotel initiative will ultimately enable hotel guests to access enterprise networks or the Internet, as well as hotel billing and in-room services such as guest-room dining. The initiative complements Copper Mountain's CopperPowered Building(tm) program announced earlier this year, a quick-to-market deployment package that offers service providers targeting the multi-tenant unit (MTU) market the full array of products and services they need to offer high-speed Internet access and other data and voice services seamlessly and cost effectively.
"The CopperPowered Hotel open coalition is yet another measure of Copper Mountain's dedication to growing the DSL market," said Richard Sekar, director of product marketing at Copper Mountain Networks. "By enabling interoperability with best-of-breed solutions such as Atreus, Nomadix, and Viator, the initiative allows ISPs to provide cost-effective solutions to their hotel customers. In addition, ISPs do not need to have CLEC status to deliver services to hotels, thus easing entry to these markets for many service providers."
Today, most business travelers rely on dial-up methods to gain Internet access at line speeds far slower than their usual corporate office connections. Hotel guests must disconnect the room's analog phone line, plug it into their laptop, and dial into the ISP's point-of-presence (PoP); if all goes well, they can typically achieve a speed of 28.8 kbps. Downloading a 1-megabyte presentation or spreadsheet can take at least 30 minutes. These slow connections result in higher phone bills, tie up trunk lines from the hotel to the PSTN, tie up room lines, and cost the traveler valuable time. With an always-on DSL connection in each room, hotel guests no longer need to use a dial-up connection for their communications needs. Instead, they can take advantage of high-speed data services, use voice and data services simultaneously, cut down their overall billing costs, and save time.
"The hotel market is an emerging opportunity for service providers and equipment vendors," said Peter Meade, senior telecom analyst at Cahners In-Stat Group (Newton, Mass.). "Right now the only option for most guests, especially business travelers, for Internet access is a slow dial-up connection. A program such as the CopperPowered Hotel initiative will proliferate cost-effective always-on and usage-based connectivity options in hotel properties across the nation and open up lucrative new business opportunities for service providers." According to the American Hotel and Motel Association's figures, in 1998 there were 3.9 million hotel rooms housed in 51,000 properties in the U.S alone.
The CopperPowered Hotel initiative helps service providers and hotel management companies take advantage of existing copper wiring in hotel properties to offer a high-speed access solution. Unlike Ethernet or other connectivity solutions, DSL does not disrupt services by requiring that a new line be installed in each room. Instead, the service provider installs a CopperEdge(r) DSL concentrator in the hotel basement; hotel guests connect to the always-on DSL connection via a phone to the appropriate CopperRocket(tm) or CopperCompatible(tm) customer premise equipment (CPE) provided in the hotel room. The CopperEdge's ability to support multiple networking models transforms DSL into a transport facility for a broad range of telecommunications services, including corporate Virtual Private Network (VPN) and voice services.
The DSL concentrator also connects to the Service Selection Gateway, a device that automatically verifies guests' IP addresses and determines whether they are static or dynamic; provides an Internet connection via a router; allows guests to access hotel services, such as room service, online; and provides guests with an interface to hotel billing services. In addition, the Service Selection Gateway enables seamless interoperation with hotel billing and property management systems, with no disruption to hotel services, because it uses the Hotel Billing Information Center (HOBIC) protocol, a common communication protocol used by the majority of hotels worldwide. Together with the DSL concentrator, the Service Selection Gateway provides the ISP and hotel management a cost-effective, easy-to-administer solution for configuring guest computers to the hotel network and the Internet without requiring any manual configuration changes to the guests' laptop computers.
Atreus is a leading software vendor providing vertical market solutions for high-speed Internet services. Atreus guestLINK(tm) software provides broadband ISPs with a cost-effective, plug-and-play, high-speed Internet solution set for the hotel industry including: email, web browsing, printing/faxing, online gaming, and virtual VPNs. Expanding beyond the typical single-point solution, the guestLINK product enables a distributable, layered policy management framework allowing service providers to manage a network of hotels with affinity programs, "follow me services," and user profiles. With guestLINK, hoteliers can enable always-on or per-use billing for network access and services. By offering these high-value services, hoteliers are able to offload their existing phone infrastructure, build customer loyalty, and create an additional high-margin revenue source.
"Atreus is excited to work with technology pioneers such as Copper Mountain and is committed to facilitating this initiative," said Andrea Baptiste, vice president of sales and marketing at Atreus Systems Corporation. "The Atreus guestLINK software solution, working seamlessly with CopperMountain's DSL, will provide hoteliers with a turnkey offering to ensure that the seasoned traveler maintains the connectivity required to operate in today's business environment. Together, Atreus' best-of-breed software with Copper Mountain's leading DSL solutions offer our customers a springboard for new revenue growth."
Located in Westlake Village, Calif., and led by Dr. Leonard Kleinrock, a father of the Internet, Nomadix designs, manufactures, and distributes a new class of dedicated network devices that allow broadband ISPs to offer plug-and-play access to their networks and service selection on demand. Nomadix' Universal Subscriber Gateways(tm) (USGs) are based on open standards and do not require any client-side software or modification to the customer's computer.
Priced from $3,500, the Nomadix Universal Subscriber Gateway for Hotels is the ideal solution for broadband ISPs who want to deliver a high-quality, high-profit service in the lucrative hospitality market. The USG for Hotels enables guest access, supports all proxy configurations, acts as a firewall, manages subscriber access and billing via credit card, manual posting, or PMS integration (HOBIC and other vendors), and redirects Internet browsers to an ISP-designated portal page where guests can buy Internet access as well as other network and hotel services.
"By the year 2000, workers who shuttle laptops to and from the office and take them on the road will be 55 million strong," said Daniel C. Toomey, chief executive officer of Nomadix, Inc. "Hotels that provide high-speed Internet access to their guests are rapidly becoming the destination of choice for travelers who need to stay connected to the office. These business 'nomads' are willing to pay for a fast, seamless connection and frequently take advantage of value-added network services. Under the CopperPowered Hotel initiative, Nomadix and Copper Mountain enable customer-friendly access for every guest computer."
Viator Networks, based in Sterling, Virginia, develops integrated server and network hardware solutions for the hospitality, multiple-dwelling unit (MDU), and MTU markets. Viator's Linux-powered HoteLink(tm) (pronounced " Hotel-Link") server provides plug-and-play PC connectivity, PMS-integrated billing services, room-level firewall security, and a customizable, ecommerce-enabled portal. Significantly, none of Viator's servers have revenue-sharing or per-port access fees connected to their use. That means greater profits for property owners and service providers.
"We believe high-speed Internet access will be standard in all hotels in the coming decade," stated Viator Networks President and CEO Todd Landfried. "To gain that competitive advantage now, hotels need a feature-rich, robust, and standards-based solution to ensure the investment they make now can carry them into the future. Using the combination of Viator's HoteLink(tm) server with Copper Mountain's leading DSL solutions, property owners can rest assured that today's investment is ahead of the curve and will not require duplication."
Equipment providers interested in joining the CopperPowered Hotel initiative should contact Richard Sekar at 650-687-3331 or
Copper Mountain Networks, Inc.
Portions of this release contain forward-looking statements regarding future events and are subject to risks and uncertainties. Copper Mountain wishes to caution you that there are some factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results indicated by such statements. These factors include, but are not limited to quarterly fluctuations in operating results attributable to the timing and amount of orders for our products, the concentration of our revenue in a small number of customers, factors affecting the rate of DSL deployment by our customers, market acceptance of our products, our ability to keep pace with rapidly changing product requirements, and factors affecting the demand for DSL technologies. We refer you to the documents Copper Mountain files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission, specifically the section titled Risk Factors in our Registration Statement on Form S-1 (No. 333-73153).
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