Startrax: Broadband strategies focusing on simplicity

SAN FRANCISCO—Marketing broadband service doesn’t have to be overly complex, according to speakers this morning at the RHK Startrax 2004 conference here.

In fact, the more simplistic carriers can make broadband for users, the greater the adoption. The biggest issue, though, is figuring out the specific model that will allow carriers to offer broadband profitably. One of the key elements is being able to reuse as much of the core infrastructure as possible, said Kathy Walker, executive vice president of network service for Sprint.

"Stripped down, the IP economics are a tough proposition," Walker said. "The more I can converge, the more I can use common assets."

On the local side, however, the model also focuses on simplicity but no single pay model has shown itself to be profitable, according to Douglas Bulleit, chief strategist for BellSouth. At the same time, large carriers also need to view broadband as just another transition.

"The best broadband proposition may be no broadband proposition at all," Bulleit said. "It’s just another transition in our business."

Among the various models BellSouth is testing is what Bulleit refers to as the "900-model" where users or content providers pay for premium services on an on-demand basis. Its deal with MovieLink, for example, allows users that are BellSouth DSL customers to download movies much faster than other broadband users. To the customer, though, there is little difference in what they are expected to do.

"The customer needs to perceive the innovation as mildly if at all disruptive, but you have to selectively disrupt competitors," Bulleit said.