From...

January 12, 2000
Web posted at: 3:20 p.m. EST (2020 GMT)

by Chris Yurko

(IDG) -- Free Internet access is gaining in popularity -- even high-speed access. For the second time in a week, a company has announced it will offer free high-speed Internet access over digital subscriber lines.

On January 3, Broadband Digital Group of Newport Beach, California, announced that it would offer free DSL access. On January 7, INYC of New York made a similar announcement.

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But just how much these services will actually cost depends on your definition of free. Both companies, for instance, will require their subscribers to view advertising as part of the bargain.

INYC takes it even farther than that, requiring users to interact with advertisers. The more users click on advertising banners, earning "Ibates," the more they'll save on their monthly fees. The base cost for participation is $69 a month, which is the worst-case scenario, says Anthony Hidalgo, INYC's director of business development.

So, how much interaction will it take to work off $69?

"Click on 16 banners a day and you'll owe us nothing at the end of the month," he says.

Does the good outweigh the bad?

The benefit, of course, is that DSL lines offer download speeds many times faster than what is possible over regular telephone lines: roughly 384 kilobits per second over DSL compared to 56 kbps over phone lines.

But there may be set-up charges associated with the installation of the high-speed lines. One-time fees can run as high as $500, with a DSL modem included, depending on the local telephone company. INYC has partnership agreements with several telephone companies to offer DSL services nationally, including Bell Atlantic. "Some people will be lucky enough to be in a geographic area where they won't have to pay set-up charges," Hidalgo says. "Others will have to pay." Even if no set-up fees apply, users will still need to buy a DSL modem, which costs about $200.

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Broadband Digital Group allows its subscribers to earn their modem by convincing ten other people to subscribe to its FreeDSL service. Both companies require users to submit detailed demographic, geographic, and personal interest information in order to target advertising. According to Hidalgo, INYC's ultimate goal is to do away with the advertising banner and create a portal that will automatically track user activity and credit Ibates for routine actions completed through the site. Steven Bruno, cofounder of INYC, says the company will begin its rollout on March 15 in eastern states and should be completed nationally within three months. According to its announcement last week, Broadband Digital Group will begin offering its free DSL service in April.