PairGain to Offer Super-Speed Devices to Public

PairGain Technologies Inc. said its products, which boost the capacity of copper phone lines to carry computer data at high speeds, will soon be available to residential customers for the first time through an agreement with U.S. West.

The agreement marks the first time that PairGain has moved to tap the growing demand for high-speed connections to the Internet and other networks by home PC users and small businesses. Traditionally, PairGain’s devices have been used in large business networks.

PairGain’s devices have already been used by U.S. West employees as part of the Englewood, Colo.-based phone company’s preliminary trial of a new Internet access service. The service is expected to be made available later this year to customers of U.S. West, which serves most of the western United States, excluding California and Nevada.

By subscribing to the service and using PairGain’s devices, residential customers will be able to access information on the Internet at speeds 26 times faster than today’s popular 28.8 modems, officials said.

Charles Strauch, chief executive at PairGain, said the roll-out of the technology will take time, but that within a few years the residential business “could grow as rapidly as our core business,” which has expanded by about 70% each year in recent years.

Prices for the service have not been set, but U.S. West has signaled that monthly fees will probably be about $35, not including hookup fees and time and distance charges.

Strauch said the company’s Megabit Modem devices are being used in trials currently being conducted by other phone companies.