SBC’s U-verse Brand Unveiled Following Spate of Announcements
LAS VEGAS -- An almost apologetic SBC CEO Edward Whitacre Thurs. said in a speech to the Consumer Electronics Show it has taken his company too long to make a major appearance at the show. The CEO said SBC was correcting that with a series of announcements leading up to the unveiling of the new U-verse brand for its video platform.
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SBC has been playing catch-up: Verizon jumped out first with a similar platform and cable companies have been spending huge amounts upgrading their networks. But the company decided to make a major splash at CES.
“We're not known for getting ahead of our headlight. We're a little uncomfortable talking about a strategy or a plan before we're comfortable with the outcome,” Whitacre said. “This year, 2005, SBC is going to deliver. This is the year when excitement and feasibility finally meet on the same page.” Whitacre also announced SBC has surpassed 5 million DSL customers. “We've been after 5 million for a long time,” he said.
The Whitacre speech comes against the backdrop of an opening CES keynote Wed. night by Microsoft founder Bill Gates promising that an era of convergence has arrived. Gates’ presentation included a demonstration of the SBC offering. Also Wed., SBC unveiled a 10-year, $400 million deal with Microsoft, which is providing the digital TV software platform.
On Mon., SBC unveiled a new service that will link satellite video with its Yahoo DSL Internet, offering the services through a single box connecting a customer’s television, computer and stereo (CD Jan 5 p4). Customers can tie in satellite radio and video on demand. The service will first be offered in markets where SBC is the local telecom provider.
Whitacre didn’t elaborate on the service’s price but has said in the past SBC hopes to offer a package of broadband, video, voice and wireless for about $100 monthly. Asked again Thurs., he told reporters: “Something like $100 seems reasonable to me, without cellphone.”
Whitacre told us SBC hopes for additional orders from the FCC addressing issues including intercarrier compensation (ICC). “They still have a lot of things that aren’t cleared up,” he said. “We still don’t have these UNE-P and unbundling rules yet. There’s intercarrier compensation. There’s room for clarification on broadband. There’s a lot of stuff they have to do.”
Whitacre also said regulatory uncertainty “is figured in, you bet” on investment decisions on putting more fiber into the ground. He said he wasn’t sure whether SBC will be able to strike a satisfactory agreement on IC. “That’s one of those that’s tough going,” he said.