CHANGE THE WAY YOU LIVE @ HOME

High-speed cable Internet moves broadband content into the mainstream

Optus @Home today unveiled details of its exciting new online content created especially for the Optus @Home high-speed cable Internet service. Optus @Home will provide broadband content for seven major categories from both established media giants including AAP, CNN, Fox and Bloomberg as well as new online companies such as WHOOPi! and ITV WORLD.

Content channels currently available include News, Sports, Finance, Entertainment, Information Technology, Games and "WebWaste".

"Optus @Home is an online content experience that combines rich video, audio and graphics optimised for our high-speed network plus everyday utilities that take advantage of Optus @Home's 'constant connection'," said Chris Chapman, CEO of At Home Network Australia.

"The Optus @Home service will change the way consumers interact with information and the Internet. Let's say you have a dial-up Internet service and wanted to go to the movies. It's faster for you to read the paper than to go online for information. With Optus @Home, you get immediate access to movie reviews and times, you can watch the movie trailer right on your desktop, then email a friend to meet you - all in the amount of time it would have taken to dial-up and log-on," he said.

"This is not simply a 'drag and drop' content service. Our media partners create enhanced content for the Optus @Home service. We then distribute that content via caching servers located throughout our high-speed network. The net effect is that consumers receive richer, more compelling content - delivered faster and more reliably."

Optus @Home News channel features top international news video from CNN and Fox News, updated daily, seven days a week. Subscribers are kept up-to-date throughout the day with AAP text news feeds and local weather from the Bureau of Meteorology.

The Finance channel includes Market Briefing and TechLine video from Bloomberg and Australian Market Minutes audio from WHOOPi!. This finance line-up will be further enhanced with Business Daily video from AAP, Business Break video updates from ITV WORLD and Channel E Stock quotes in coming weeks.

Optus @Home PopArts channel will include the latest movie trailers from Entertainment Boulevard, Online Previews from top shows featured on Optus Television and horoscopes from astrologer Kelli Fox.

Mr Chapman anticipates that Optus @Home's free multiplayer games will be extremely popular, "Optus @Home is Nirvana for online gamers. Our subscribers can play games on our low latency network, including Quake III, Half-Life, Tribes and Unreal without the delays and interruptions typical of slow dial-up networks."

The Optus @Home Tech Channel will feature ITV WORLD's Tech News and Hot Stuff video as well as "Internet Old Boys" audio from WHOOPi! and tech news feeds from ZDNet Australia.

Also expected to be popular is the Optus @Home "Showcase" tab featuring "Click Cinema", a channel of award winning film, video and animation shorts from iFILM and atom films and "3D Movies" from Brilliant Digital Entertainment - featuring animated characters such as KISS, Xena Princess Warrior, Superman and Popeye.

In addition to delivering broadband content, Optus @Home will also make the entire Internet easier and more accessible. From the home page, subscribers can use the Excite Australia search engine to find exactly what they are looking for on the Web.

Alternatively, subscribers can click on "How Do I?" to perform a range of useful tasks such as book airline tickets, buy groceries, book tickets to the theatre, find job listings, read horoscopes, or rent a car.

"And this is just the beginning," said Mr Chapman, "Over the coming months and years, we will continue to lead Australia in developing exciting new content for the broadband medium.

We encourage all local Australian content providers to begin looking seriously at the high-speed market and to work with us to push the boundaries of broadband content development."

From $59.95 a month (plus a one-off installation fee)*, Optus @Home customers will receive unlimited high-speed Internet access, unlimited downloads and unlimited usage at a fixed, predictable price. This includes customised Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer browsers, five email accounts five personal WebSpace accounts (up to 5MB) for your own homepages, 24 hours, seven days a week technical support, search and navigation tools, newsgroups, and more.

People wanting to experience the power of cable Internet should visit www.optushome.com.au and click on 'Sign Up' to register their interest.

Optus @Home Velocity Monthly Plan installation fee: $398. Optus @Home Accelerator Plan (12 Month Fixed Term Contract) installation fee: $199.

Editor's Note: Individual content category photographs/transparencies available on request.

For more information:
Melissa Favero
Public Affairs
Cable & Wireless Optus