Juno Online Services Looks to Streaming Software

Content companies cry that when broadband is ubiquitous they will have the audience base to be profitable, and broadband providers believe that they will have more subscribers when the content is compelling enough to users. Whether the chicken or the egg is correct, a different kind of streaming is being used to entice consumers to upgrade to broadband — streaming software.

Juno Online Services ( www.juno.com), which has nearly 4 million dial-up subscribers, launched a broadband DSL service with Covad in March 2000. Since then they also offer high-speed mobile wireless access provided through Metricom Inc.'s Ricochet network. Juno has announced plans to offer satellite-based fixed wireless Internet access through an alliance with Hughes Network Systems, and has also begun working with Time Warner Cable, AT&T Broadband and Comcast Cable to offer high-speed Internet access over their cable networks.

According to a spokesperson from Juno, the adoption of its broadband service has been slow, due in part to the fact that its customer's are largely novice users that do not log enough time online to warrant paying for a faster service.

Into Networks and Juno Online Services announced an agreement on Tuesday to offer Into Networks's streaming software services to subscribers of Juno Express, Juno's high-speed broadband service.

The service works by sending compressed packets of CD-ROM software over IP that allows the program to run without being installed on the user's computer. The services are available on a subscription and premium pay-per-play basis, and include hundreds of games, as well as education and business software titles. Juno Express users will be able to rent individual software titles for a few days or subscribe to entire channels of software titles from more than 30 software publishers.

Currently the agreement is limited to a marketing relationship, where Juno subscribers will be sent to an Into Networks supported Web page to sign up for the premium service. A spokesperson for Juno indicated that this is not an exclusive relationship, but that Juno chose to work with Into Networks because of its vision for the future.