Sprint has repackaged its business DSL services in select U.S. markets in an attempt to better meet the needs of small and businesses. The company, which last September announced plans to introduce Sprint Business DSL in 47 markets, announced today it has significantly ratcheted up speeds, enhanced customer service and brought to market new router equipment to support multiple users per business for 32 of its original 47 business DSL markets.
The new service delivers bandwidth of up to 8mbps upstream and 512kbps downstream. The service announced in September of 2001 offered a maximum of 1.5mbps upstream bandwidth and 384kbps downstream connectivity.
“Many DSL providers put throttles to slow down the user experience,” says David Palan
director of marketing for Sprint Business DSL. “Sprint DSL is blazing fast.” That speed can mean the difference between winning and losing a customer, according to Palan. He says a customer could use the service to send a five-color photo attachment such as a PowerPoint in as little as three seconds, or five minutes in heavy network traffic. Sending that service over a dialup connection could take five minutes or much longer.
Dedicated customer support for the service means both customer service reps and technical support people are focused solely on helping business customers of the DSL service, adds Palan.
The new and improved Sprint Business DSL runs over connections on Sprint’s Tier 1 backbone that do not carry residential users. Previously, business DSL ran over a shared platform with residential DSL; it was all backhauled to a Lucent Technologies Inc. Stinger and sent to the backbone, explains Palan.
Sprint also now offers its business DSL customers in the select 32 markets a router that offers security and can support an unlimited number of users with dynamic addresses, says Palan. It’s a special piece of equipment Sprint created the specifications for and had an OEM (which Palan declined to name) build. Sprint had previously used a broadband modem, which served up to six “static” users, says Palan.
Sprint continues to invite small and medium businesses to try the service for 90 days and if they’re not happy with the service, Sprint is offering a full refund on all upfront costs of getting connected. If for any reason the DSL service goes down during , Sprint will give the customer a refund on its invoice.
Also as before, Sprint Business DSL is typically installed within 30 days of the order. If it takes more than 45 days, Sprint will prorate the service to compensate the customer for its time. All users receive professional installation, usually completed within two hours, as part of the deal. Installation can even be done on weekends to accommodate business needs, Palan says.
Sprint Business DSL is priced at $159.99 per month with a two-year service agreement, or $184.99 per month with a one-year service agreement. A month-to-month service agreement is also available at $224.99 per month. There are also activation and equipment fees. Through the end of February 2002, those customers who sign a one or two year service level agreement, will receive a high-speed router/modem free. Also, as part of Sprint's introductory offer, the activation fee is waived. Customers receive a professional, on-site installation for a one-time cost of $199 dollars.
“We found competitors marketing [lower data rate DSL services with] prices $50 to $100 higher on a monthly basis and with higher initial costs,” says Palan. “So we think we’ve got a really unique value proposition.”
