Easy living, Defensive move launches Cox into apartment environment

Cox Communications may be the incumbent cable operator in Orange County, Calif., but recent agreements between apartment complexes and wireless cable operators have hit the Atlanta-based multiple systems operator in its pocketbook.

A number of upscale multiple dwelling units have signed deals giving direct-to-home satellite carriers and multichannel multipoint distribution service system operators exclusive rights to provide video services to residents. The carriers install dishes at an apartment building, then run coaxial cable to each unit-effectively keeping Cox from potentially lucrative customers.

But Cox has struck back, signing an agreement with the management company of the brand-new Sonterra apartment complex in Foothill Ranch, Calif.

When residents of the complex move into their units, they have two options: They can call Pacific Bell for their local phone service, Cox Communications for their cable service and a third company for their Internet access-or just sign up with Cox for all three services when they sign their leases. Cox will also add wireless service via Sprint PCS within the next few months.

"It was a decision that we made to remain competitive in the apartment environment," said Gordon Williams, director of broadband services for multiple dwelling unit markets at Cox.

Traditionally, most apartment complexes are served by a large PBX system, which means that if too many people are on the phone, a resident may not be able to dial out, said Mark Davis, director of engineering and telephony technology at Cox.

The 308-unit Sonterra complex, on the other hand, is served by what is basically a fiber-to-the-curb network, Davis said. Northern Telecom's next generation digital loop carrier equipment connects Cox's Sonet network directly to the complex. At the demarcation point between the fiber network and the premises, voice services are carried to each unit over twisted pair and video services over coaxial cable. For Internet access, a fiber runs from the demarcation point to an Ethernet hub at the side of each building, then to a data local area network cable with an RJ-45 interface to each unit, essentially creating a large campus LAN with a total bandwidth of 10 Mb.

Residents who subscribe to the entire package will receive local telephone and long-distance service, analog video and the Cox @Home high-speed on-line service. Cox will add digital video to the package later this year using set-top boxes from General Instrument, Davis said.

For the consumer, the advantage is being able to take care of everything at once, Williams said. The leasing agent can assign a telephone number immediately and arrange for everything to be turned on when the resident moves in.

"It's convenient for the residents, and it offers the leasing agent an advantage in getting tenants," Williams said.

Since the complex opened last November, 167 leases have been signed, and 163 of those residents are subscribing to the complete Cox service, he said. The MSO will launch similar services in other multiple dwelling units around the country later this year.

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