THE FUTURE AS SEEN THROUGH TECHNOLOGY

For the technology-savvy public, the myriad benefits of broadband are obvious. But getting consumers who have little use for high-speed data to adopt broadband is a big concern for carriers preparing to spend billions of dollars on fiber deployments.

Motorola hopes its new personal video phone, the Ojo, will give even the most computer-illiterate person a compelling reason to subscribe to high-speed offerings.

The fundamental concept is straightforward: Grandma may not care whether she can download the latest rap song off the Internet, but she may be willing to pay for a broadband connection if it lets her see a real-time image of her grandchildren every time they call — particularly if traveling is not practical.

“Having a face-to-face conversation with a loved one is a compelling service,” said Motorola spokesman Paul Alfieri. “It makes that broadband connection valuable to a consumer, which makes a sticky customer for a broadband provider.”

Using an enhanced version of the H.264 digital-compression standard, the Ojo transmits 30 frames-per-second video on a high-resolution 16:9 LCD display at data rates as low as 110 kb/s, meaning no additional network equipment is needed for even the highest volumes of video phone traffic over the slowest of broadband connections.

The phone's unique design is attributable to the desire to have the user face the video screen (and embedded camera) while talking normally via the Ojo's high fidelity, full duplex speakerphone. By elevating the Ojo camera, the image seen is the speaker and a phone-level view of the surrounding area — a stark contrast to the phones with desktop-level cameras, which often give a view up the speaker's nose.

“It's not just designed to look cool, but it's designed to let people have a comfortable, face-to-face conversation,” Alfieri said.

Of course, a Web cam and a voice-over-IP service can provide a similar experience, but Alfieri said the Ojo delivers a better quality of voice and video. More important, a user doesn't have to be technologically savvy to use the Ojo, which requires only an Ethernet connection to be plugged in, he said. Indeed, while features such as e-mail and security-monitoring capabilities could be included in future versions for the product, the first Ojos are solely video phones to make the technology as simple as possible for consumers, Alfieri said.

Manufactured by Worldgate Communications, the Ojo has been displayed at several trade shows during the past several months. In June, it was demonstrated during a staff briefing about broadband technologies to President George W. Bush, who participated in a face-to-face video conversation using the Ojo.

Alfieri said Motorola plans to announce the commercial availability of the Ojo in January 2005 at the 2005 Consumer Electronics Show, which last week named the Ojo one of its Innovations 2005 Design and Engineering Showcase honorees.

Expected to retail at $799, the Ojo likely is out of reach for most consumers as a one-time expense, even with the various discounts and rebates Motorola plans to administer with the Ojo rollout. But Motorola believes the Ojo will become part of enhanced broadband bundles offered as part of long-term contracts, effectively allowing customers to pay for the video phone over time.

Such long-term contracts are good for the broadband provider, and other customizable Ojo features — for instance, speed-dial directories with freeze-frame pictures of the person being called — can help create customer relationships that reduce churn for the carrier, Alfieri said.

“We think the Ojo is a good way for broadband providers to differentiate themselves from competitors and create customer loyalty,” Alfieri said.