LUS to sign first fiber users

• By RICHARD BURGESS
• Advocate Acadiana bureau
• Published: Dec 24, 2008 - Page: 1BA - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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LAFAYETTE — Lafayette Utilities System will sign up its first customers next month for the city’s publicly owned Internet, cable and telephone service, LUS officials announced at Tuesday’s City-Parish Council meeting.

Also Tuesday, LUS for the first time released pricing and details of its packages for the so-called triple play service.

The bundle of cable, Internet and phone will start at $84.85 for basic residential service, with upgraded service packages at $137.21 and $199.99, according to information from LUS.

The basic package includes Internet speeds of 10 Mbps on the download and upload, more than 80 cable channels and phone service with three-way calling, call waiting and 5-cents-per-minute long distance in the continental U.S.

LUS Director Terry Huval said the basic residential service will also allow customers without computers to have basic Internet browsing capability through the television.

“We think it may well be the first in the world,” Huval said of the television-based Web browsing capability. “It’s for the child at home trying to do a book report and cannot access the Internet today.”

The premium residential service will offer more than 250 cable channels plus movie channels, expanded phone features and Internet speeds of 50 Mbps, among the fastest in the nation for home service.

All customers on the LUS fiber system will be able to exchange information with other fiber customers at 100 Mbps, Huval said.

He said that additional features in the works include pay-per-view and video on demand.

“This is one of those times when we over deliver on the promises made,” City-Parish President Joey Durel said.

LUS — which already provides water, sewer and electricity in the city — has been installing fiber optic lines for the past year in preparation for expanding into the communications business. 

The service will first be available to residents east of Evangeline Thruway and in the Johnston Street corridor from University Avenue to past the Mall of Acadiana, as well as some areas along Congress Street, Ambassador Caffery Parkway and Camellia Boulevard.

The service will be rolled out in four phases and is scheduled to be available citywide by 2011.