Here’s a look at 10 additional technologies circulating through the industry spin cycle.

By Network World Staff
Network World, 09/11/00

DSL ... Still not ready for prime time

DSL remains as buzzy a topic as ever, with widespread availability, improved installation and lower prices. But DSL service provisioning is not yet a well-enough-oiled machine for many corporate shops.

Look at the facts. DSL runs on regular regional Bell operating company phone lines. That means competitive local exchange carriers (CLEC) must lease lines and switching center space from RBOCs and place orders with them to get DSL orders filled. But most RBOCs and CLECs lack fully automated ordering systems, leaving room for error as orders get faxed, hand entered and re-entered, says Beth Gage, an analyst with TeleChoice, a marketing firm in Boston.

Other problems include understaffing, particularly among the smaller carriers. Businesses want proof that DSL service is reliable. "They want to know that if there is an outage, service will be restored quickly and there will be a real live human on the phone," Gage says.

There are promising signs. For instance, the CLECs have convinced the RBOCs to let them share phone lines. So if a customer has phone service from an RBOC, the CLEC can sell DSL service over that same line rather than requiring a new one. Still, much work is needed before the CLECs and RBOCs devise an efficient system for doing so, Gage says.

Also, DSL equipment vendors have figured out how to support DSL via remote terminals, formerly an obstacle to selling DSL. That's good for the RBOCs, but so far CLECs have not negotiated their way into these terminals, where space is at a premium.

- Tim Greene

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