Hybrid Networks, Inc.: An Independent Assessment
Editor's Note: We are pleased to publish the
following assessment of Hybrid Networks by Robert Berger, President of InterNix
Information Systems, a provider of cost effective high bandwidth Internet
connectivity and services.
-- 1993 by Robert Berger
Report on a Hybrid Demonstration
At this point, although I have only seen a demo of Hybrid Networks Beta
release on the Sun Workstation, it was enough to make me want to get one
immediately for my home! The demo set up had a SparcStation 1+ connected
to the Hybrid Network HAS PoP via Cupertino Cable channel 63. When you tune
a TV to that channel you see the same kind of "snow" as the digital audio
channels that are transmitted on some cable channels. A Motorola V.FAST
modem was used for the return channel, so that is a bit of cheating if you
expect to use a more ubiquitous V.32bis modem.
Most of the demos were run as remote X applications across the Hybrid
Network and appeared to be only slightly slower than they would if they
were directly on an Ethernet LAN. These applications ran on computers
that were at the HAS PoP and thus were connected to the PoP router via
Ethernet. The demos that executed out of the demo hosts at the PoP show
the true throughput of the Hybrid Network system. Access to Internet services
would add router delays and backbone bottlenecks unrelated to the Hybrid
Network system. The local demos consisted of running a Multimedia Presentation
(Cats Meow) as a remote X application. The demo had digital audio, slides,
large graphics files and a small MPEG video display. All of which ran
without a glitch (except for the MPEG display --- I couldn't tell if that
was the material or the network). The audio was particularly good. When
a segment of Internet Talk Radio was played flawlessly in real-time across
the cable, that it really sunk in that this a lot more bandwidth than
most of us are used to getting in our home!
To get a quantitative idea of how fast the link is, we FTP'd a 1.7 mega
byte file from the server at the HAS PoP. The Unix FTP tool reported that
it took 7.5 seconds at a transfer rate of 230 kbytes / second.
We then started to cruise the Internet using Xmosaic. This was a real
pleasure compared to the normal interactions available when using a 14.4
kbps modem. It was trivial to transverse the hyper-links, pull up documents
and even listen to audio files. Graphics like Weather Maps and NASA GIFs
came up pretty fast, but not quite as fast as I expected. Some of this
lack of ultimate speed was due to the fact that the Xmosaic and supporting
tools (like xv to display the graphics) were running remotely on the server
at the HAS PoP.
All in all, the experience was much more like having an institutional
T1 link to the Internet than a link that I could afford at home. Hybrid's
Market Place Position
Hybrid Networks brings together many technologies (RF, routers, software,
networks, computers) to producea very cost effective mechanism to allow
individuals to gain access to the Internet with over 2 orders of magntude
more bandwidth and only about 2 or 3 times the cost of existing phone
/ modem technology. Moreover itis expected that these costs will quickly
become close to the costs of the modem usage.
The Hybrid Network concept means that many more people will be able
to afford to access the Internet with incoming bandwidth that will enable
new applications and more powerful graphical / multimedia user interfaces.
The only negative is that there is a gap between life as a consumer and
life as a producer of Internet services and content. People who want to
be information providers will have to ether purchase conventional high
bandwidth links to the Internet, or contract with service bureaus to carry
their content.
This negative is easily outweighed by the Hybrid Network's ability to
deliver incoming high bandwidth at costs that are an order of magnitude
more affordable than symmetrical high bandwidth. By opening up new markets
and educating a broader population on what the Internet can offer, the
asymmetrical technologies will create a "pull" for higher bandwidth in
the return channel and / or lower cost, higher bandwidth symmetrical services.
Many technologists feel that this kind of asymmetrical hybrid technology
that mixes networking with Cable TV is kludgy and "inelegant". It may
be, but it does open new possibilities by harnessing a widely deployed
infrastructure (Cable TV distribution) to jump-start the National Information
Infrastructure. The network access that Hybrid Networks brings within
the next 6 months would otherwise not be available for 2 to 5 years if
we waited for the phone companies to deploy ADSL/HDSL or the Cable companies
to upgrade their plant for 2 way communications.
How Will Hybrid Networks, Inc. Choose its Market Niche?
Hybrid Networks is still working on focusing its business plan, so the following
personal musings are all based on my view of their current position and
apparent interests. As Hybrid Networks prepare to introduce their technology,
they see a huge potential marketplace with lots of potential niches for
themselves and other players.
Many companies that are in or are entering the Internet services marketplace
are suffering from the same dilemma of trying to decide how much of the
delicious looking pie to bite off. Most choose poorly and think they can
address the whole market, from wholesale to retail. What we need is some
stratification of the market. Hopefully Hybrid Networks will see where
their niche is and not go after more than they can swallow.
Is Hybrid Networks a hardware manufacturer? An Internet service provider?
An information service bureau? Or some mix of all of the above? Their
current thoughts are to install and run the Hybrid Access System PoPs
in most regions of the country. They will deliver the high bandwidth Cable
TV leg and work with existing Internet providers who will supply the return
channels. Hybrid Networks is also considering running a service bureau
at their PoPs where information providers can co-locate servers to offer
value added Internet services and content.
Will this work? Does Hybrid Networks have the resources to supply volume
hardware and software on several platforms as well as set up and maintain
network PoPs and service bureaus around the world? In my opinion, it would
be most appropriate for Hybrid Networks to focus on hardware and software
for the Remote Link Adapters and Hybrid routers. If Hybrid Networks tries
to hoard their technology, they will encourage others to make competing
(and possibly incompatible) systems.
Instead, Hybrid Networks should sell turnkey HAS PoP packages to Cable
TV systems and Internet Providers who will handle the local setup, sales,
maintenance and support. Hybrid Networks should also focus on manufacturing
the RLAs and distributing them through Internet Providers and retail outlets.
They should license the technology to other manufacturers so that they
do not get stuck in a proprietary ghetto.
By getting the products out far and wide quickly through parallel manufacturing
distribution win-win arrangements with other players, Hybrid Networks
could establish a de-facto standard that they can ride on to greater success
than if they try to do it all themselves.
Where is the Technology Going?
The technology offered by Hybrid Networks is in many ways in the same position
as ISDN. Its offers significant benefits over today's technology, but its
not as good as the technology that is just over the horizon.
I believe that it is worth pursuing both now and not waiting for the
future to arrive. The kind of communications and information sharing that
the Internet offers can have a significant positive impact on how our
society solves the many problems facing us. It is critical that the Internet
be accessible to many more people at bandwidths higher than existing phone
/ modem technology. It is important to get this kind of Internet technology
into the hands of many more people before the media giants can monopolize
information networks in their own image.
The Hybrid Networks technology actually has a better chance than ISDN
since the underlying technology (Cable TV) is already ubiquitously deployed.
It can be sold and distributed through channels that lend themselves to
a mass market. Hybrid Networks, Incorporated has a unique opportunity
to play a major role in the shaping of our information economy. I hope
that they have the clarity of vision to find and fill the appropriate
niches.
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