Discussing subscriber goals

In a push to increase subscriber numbers, AT&T hopes to spur its Net-over-cable partner Excite@Home to increase its service deployments. The telecommunications giant met with other cable partners, including Comas and Coax Communications, in Denver last week to discuss subscriber goals and other issues surrounding the leading cable Net service, according to AT&T spokeswoman Tracy Hollingsworth. "We talked through issues and concerns and try to figure out what we need to do," Hollingsworth said. "How do we improve customer service? How do we get this product, which is in high demand, to customers more quickly?" As the market for broadband Net access heats up, cable operators are scrambling to introduce their services as quickly as possible to combat competition from digital subscriber line (DSL) technology. DSL allows users to get high-speed Net access over existing telephone lines. AT&T, the largest shareholder in Excite@Home, recently revealed its subscriber target is between 700,000 and 1 million customers by the end of 2000. AT&T claimed 113,000 AT&T@Home customers at the end of September.