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@Home allowed to go dark tonight

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  • @Home allowed to go dark tonight

    Unless AT&T ups the offer satisfactorily, they will have to implement their backup network, it seems

    From here: http://www.dotcomscoop.com/index.htm...7152666,88811,


    A federal bankruptcy court judge in San Francisco today said that the broadband network of Excite@Home will be shutdown on Friday at midnight PST (3:00 AM EST) if a deal with its cable partners and creditors is not reached, sources at the proceedings tell Dotcom Scoop.

    Excite@Home has the right under the ruling to renogiate its Master Distribution Agreements with its cable partners and with the approval of creditors, according to published reports. Excite@Home said it is losing $6 million per week keeping the network operational.

    Judge Thomas Carlson said he felt that a deal could be reached quickly so that service would not be interrupted. Excite@Home representatives are currently negotiating new operating agreements with cable partners, which creditors must approve, according to the Associated Press.

    The decision could affect approximately 4.1 million cable Internet access subscribers using @Home's service through partners such as AT&T, Charter Communications, Comcast and Cox.

    If the network is shutdown, AT&T will attempt to migrate customers to its own existing network. Cox is in the process of finishing work on its network, but indications are that customers won't be moved until next year. Comcast is also in the process of building its own network, but there is no timetable for customers to be moved. Both Cox and Comcast have suggested that subscribers use free ISP NetZero as an alternative.

    At the heart of the argument was a bondholders motion which asked that the court re-evaluate Excite@Home's broadband assets, which are set to be acquired by AT&T for $307 million. Owed almost $750 million, bondholders contended that the value of the assets is more than AT&T is offering and that fair value could only be known if the network was shutdown and cable partners were forced to find alternative providers. Today's ruling is a clear victory for bondholders.
    Gigabyte P35-DS3L with a Q6600, 2GB Kingston HyperX (after *3* bad pairs of Crucial Ballistix 1066), Galaxy 8800GT 512MB, SB X-Fi, some drives, and a Dell 2005fpw. Running WinXP.

  • #2
    !@!$!%#

    I can't believe the judge allowed this to happen.

    Dave
    Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice, pull down your pants and slide on the ice.

    Comment


    • #3
      He didn't.

      Here is the story I choose to believe.

      Our experts highlight the events shaping tomorrow.


      Despite threats from the cable companies, Carlson and numerous attorneys for bondholders and unsecured creditors said that shutting off service was highly unlikely--chiefly because such a move would be detrimental to all parties involved. Excite@Home and various cable partners, including AT&T Broadband, Cox Communications and Comcast, share infrastructure and content, and the companies split revenue that comes from paying subscribers.
      But I guess we will find out tonight.

      Last edited by Pneumatic; 30 November 2001, 16:59.

      (The artist formerly known as Kindness!)

      Comment


      • #4
        That's a much better article than the one I had posted.

        I had no idea the cable co's were being such greedy ****oles. Well, yeah I did, but I thought they were just screwing the customers.
        Gigabyte P35-DS3L with a Q6600, 2GB Kingston HyperX (after *3* bad pairs of Crucial Ballistix 1066), Galaxy 8800GT 512MB, SB X-Fi, some drives, and a Dell 2005fpw. Running WinXP.

        Comment


        • #5
          update

          Dear customer,

          We at Insight would like to provide you with an update regarding the status of your Insight@Home service, based on today’s hearing.

          This afternoon, the US Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of California, issued the decision that enabled Excite@Home to cancel their contracts with their affiliated cable operators. It is important to note that this does not equate to the network shutting down; it simply means that @Home has the option to do so.

          Based on the nature of the ongoing negotiations, we are still optimistic that this ruling will not result in a loss of service for our customers and that an agreement will be reached.

          We are working hard to avoid any inconvenience to our customers. In mid-October, we, together with other @Home affiliates (including Cox, Comcast, and Mediacom), increased our payments by over 50% to ensure uninterrupted service until an agreement among the Creditors could be reached; this was done at no additional cost to our customers. @Home affiliates including Insight are supporting AT&T in its bid to buy the @Home network. If the network were to go dark, there would be no cash coming in nor would there be any bids for @Home’s assets. Therefore, it makes no sense for @Home to “pull the plug.”

          If the unlikely occurs, we will cover your cost of a dial-up service until we can transition you back to our broadband service. As I mentioned in our earlier note, we are talking with AOL Broadband and Road Runner, and believe we can expedite a transition.

          For now, service remains intact and we encourage you to visit the special page we have on our website for further updates: www.Insight-com.com/net/UPDATES. In addition, we’d like to remind you that our customer service centers are operating with expanded staffing and hours this weekend to accommodate your inquiries.

          Please know that we, too, are frustrated by this victimization of our customers and ask you to bear with us through this process. We know this service is important to you and we are working hard to meet your needs. We truly appreciate your business and patience as we make every attempt to resolve this situation to your benefit.

          Sincerely,

          Kim D. Kelly
          Chief Operating Officer
          Insight Communications
          www.lizziemorrison.com

          Comment


          • #6
            well, it's 12:06am pst and I'm still here. I hope it lasts....

            Dave
            Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice, pull down your pants and slide on the ice.

            Comment


            • #7
              3:11 am and I'm still online. MediaOne/RoadRunner must have it figured out....

              Dr. Mordrid
              Dr. Mordrid
              ----------------------------
              An elephant is a mouse built to government specifications.

              I carry a gun because I can't throw a rock 1,250 fps

              Comment


              • #8
                No! Away! We're having enough trouble with our bandwidth on RoadRunner without all you @Home people jumping on!

                Comment


                • #9
                  Oh, I, ooooooo, I'm still a-live.

                  Hey hey yeah.
                  Gigabyte P35-DS3L with a Q6600, 2GB Kingston HyperX (after *3* bad pairs of Crucial Ballistix 1066), Galaxy 8800GT 512MB, SB X-Fi, some drives, and a Dell 2005fpw. Running WinXP.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    I guess cnet got it right!

                    Thank goodness!

                    2:45a.m. and I am still kickin!

                    (The artist formerly known as Kindness!)

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      me too!!!!! woohoo.. my modem still works.. hmm. is that something i should be happy about?
                      www.lizziemorrison.com

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        I'm still here and my Exite@home home page still opens.

                        I still wonder what ComCast is up to.

                        Paul
                        "Never interfere with the enemy when he is in the process of destroying himself"

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          @home is down for me. I am at my brothers house on his puter. AT&T says that they have migrated 86,000 customer over to there network in Washington and Oregon. They have a total of 860,000 customer that will get turned back on in 10 days or less.

                          Dave
                          Ladies and gentlemen, take my advice, pull down your pants and slide on the ice.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Well the axe finally fell on me too.

                            I am now a HPB till it is resolved

                            (The artist formerly known as Kindness!)

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              9:45 pm here and I'm still kicking.....(keeping everything crossed)

                              Paul
                              "Never interfere with the enemy when he is in the process of destroying himself"

                              Comment

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