Orange County Register

If you’ve been unhappy with Time Warner Cable, Earthlink has an alternative for those in Orange County and beyond. But not TV. It’s cable Internet. Earthlink is expanding its high-speed Internet service today in our area and offering cable Internet to folks living in Time Warner land.

Earthlink, which also offers DSL, has offered the service but to a limited number of people — approximately 400,000 in the Los Angeles area. Today, 4 million people in our area can opt for Earthlink. In O.C., residents of Fullerton, Huntington Beach, Santa Ana, Brea and Yorba Linda now have an alternative to the cable TV company.

Earthlink is using Time Warner Cable’s Internet lines. But you don’t have to be a Time Warner customer to get the cable Internet service. So, for example, you could keep your DirecTV service and subscribe to Earthlink’s broadband Internet.

Why would you maybe, possibly want to switch to Earthlink?

“If they’re already Earthlink users, they don’t have to change their e-mail address. They get access to our security features and 20 hours of dial-up service, which is handy if you’re traveling,” said Kevin Brand, Earthlink’s senior vice president of product management.

Also, if you have problems with the service, you’ll talk to an Earthlink rep, not one from Time Warner (unless it’s a cable TV-related issue — Earthlink is NOT providing cable TV service).

The price isn’t cheap but it’s competitive to what other cable TV companies charge for Internet. It’s $29.95 for the first six months and $41.95 per month after. Speeds top out at 6 megabits per second, which is slower than Time Warner’s fastest offering of 10 mbps or more. The modem is included and there is no long-term contract.

The most interesting factoid from my conversation with Brand is that Earthlink still has 2 million dial-up customers who pay $15.95 to $21.95 per month! As I mentioned in a previous post, the much faster DSL is getting down to $10 a month so I’m not sure who is still wasting that cash on dial up.

“Some people can’t get DSL,” Brand offered. “We definitely see new (dial-up) customers so clearly there is still a market. It’s a good business for us.”

Outside of OC, Earthlink’s expansion into cable Internet includes nearby Chino Hills, Chino, Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga, Fontana, and areas east of Fontana to Yucaipa and Beaumont.

Other cities include Lancaster, Palmdale, Acton, Santa Clarita, San Fernando, Ojai, Ventura, Santa Paula, Fillmore, Oxnard, Camarillo , Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley, Agoura Hills, La Brea, West Valley, Pomona, Arcadia and La Puente, Corona, Lake Elsinore, Murrieta, Temecula, Hemet, San Jacinto, Perris, Montero Valley, and the majority of the LA metro area and east towards Buena Park.

Related:

• DSL down to $10/month from Verizon and AT&T
• UPDATE: Is Broadcom getting into digital converter boxes?
• Free Wi-Fi at Starbucks — with restrictions
• EarthLink abandons Wi-Fi in Anaheim
• Californians not so speedy when it comes to Internet
• Help parents survive the digital TV transition
• Reader review: Verizon’s FiOS TV service

Did back-to-school chores force you to miss some Orange County business news? Here’s our highlight reel of some of the most intriguing stories of last week:

• Baja Fresh, La Salsa moving headquarters to Cypress
• August sales of O.C. businesses plunge 52%
• 32.5% of LA/OC home sales linked to foreclosure
• Cosmetic docs tell how to fix John McCain’s face
• Advisor ordered to pay $66 million to bilked investors
• AT&T improves indoor cell signal … for some of O.C.
• $35 movie ticket may be coming to O.C.

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