DirecTV and Current are pushing broadband over power lines (BPL) in the Dallas market. Current has equipped 130,000 homes with the service and DirecTV is beginning to market it. Packages range from a 1.5 Mbs symmetrical connection for $20/month to an 8 Mbs connection for $35/month. No word yet on penetration figures. There has been a delay in the rollout, due to Current waiting on new electricity meters that have to be installed at each home, replacing older ones.

Generally speaking, broadband over power line (BPL) deployments have been few and far between. But that’s not stopping Princeton, Illinois. The municipally owned electric utility in Princeton is about to complete its launch of BPL. Princeton began rolling it out in 2006 and expects to complete its rollout by the end of March. Officials from the utility say the BPL network offers “speeds similar to that of DSL service but slower than advertised data transfer rates for broadband service through cable companies.” Princeton charges $24.99/month for the service and has “about 100 customers.” Read more about the Princeton deployment in this Princeton Journal post.

BPL certainly doesn’t seem to be catching fire in the U.S. At this point, it’s hard to imagine BPL being a serious competitive technology to DSL, cable modem, and wireless. Stranger things have happened I guess, but there doesn’t seem to be the mass and scale of deployments for BPL necessary to make it a viable technology going forward. There does seem to be more promise for BPL as an in building/premise distribution network.

DirecTV has decided it can’t wait any longer on a triple play solution and has picked Current’s broadband over power line (BPL) solution for high speed broadband and VoIP services. DirecTV has to be frustrated at its competitors (and sometimes partners) success with triple play bundles and has finally decided enough is enough. But will BPL be the answer? Seems as if DirecTV is taking some significant risk with BPL technology. It’s fairly nascent, and unproven as a carrier grade VoIP option. Is this a sign of desperation, or will DirecTV and Current have the last laugh? After all, BPL’s greatest strength is the ubiquity of power lines in to just about every home in America. Should Current and DirecTV find a way to make this work, they may have a legitimate triple play competitive solution. They have a lot to prove though. Technically, operationally, and profitably speaking, BPL is no slam dunk. I suspect DirecTV is rolling the dice with this announced partnership, and using the Dallas market (the first identified market for the DTV/Current solution deployment) as its BPL laboratory. Should it prove successful, we may see yet another viable triple play competitor in the marketplace.

DirecTV is reportedly eyeing broadband over power line (BPL) as its triple play savior. Long in need for a data/voice component to compete with cablecos and telcos, DirecTV hopes that BPL can fit the bill. But, is this an act of desperation? BPL appears to be a long shot. Despite a number of press releases and a couple of high profile deployments, one could argue that BPL is “vaporware” in the U.S. Perhaps DirecTV is the catalyst it needs, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.

Check out this Red Herring post.