HiWired Inc. announced a partnership with Windstream to provide online tech support for Windstream’s Internet customers. In a press release HiWired says, “Windstream TechHelp, powered by HiWired, will offer an instant tech support help desk for consumers needing assistance with set-up, repair or any question regarding PCs or other peripheral devices.” The remote tech support model is one that’s being adopted by numerous service providers, as they look to expand customer relationships and the revenue associated with it.

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case involving AT&T and LinkLine Communications Inc. LinkLine is an ISP which buys wholesale broadband circuits from AT&T and then uses those circuits to compete with AT&T in some California markets. It’s a scenario played out all across the country with other incumbents and competing ISPs and CLECs. LinkLine sued AT&T, citing unfair and anti-competitive pricing for those wholesale broadband circuits. AT&T says it’s not obligated to provide wholesale circuits to competitors at favorable pricing. LinkLine obviously disagrees and so did the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, who ruled in LinkLine’s favor. So on to the Supreme Court for a case that will be closely watched by telecom’s competition interests.

In an interesting dial-up to broadband conversion strategy move, AT&T is raising the cost of its dial-up Internet service above its broadband DSL service. New dial-up customers will pay $22.95 per month for dial-up, and existing $9.95/month and $15.95/month customers will see their monthly costs rise to $15.95 and $22.95 respectively. AT&T’s lowest published DSL price is $19.95/month, although a condition of their Bellsouth acquisition compels them to offer basic DSL service (768K service) for $9.95/month in many markets.

Dial-up has lost its favor with larger carriers because collectively, more people access the Internet via broadband than dial-up. Larger carriers are much more interested in moving dial-up customers to broadband than in continuing to serve dial-up customers at all. AT&T figures that the remaining dial-up stragglers probably need to be "forced" to convert by making dial-up more expensive than broadband. There will be a select few for whom broadband conversion is not an option, simply because it is not available in their market. Dial-up has become a niche, zero growth business. That being said, there is a population of Internet users who are quite happy with dial-up, and see no need to move to broadband. Moves like this one from AT&T may create business opportunities for companies interested in serving the niche dial-up market. ISP competitors like Juno are sure to swoop in and court dial-up customers who won’t be thrilled that there monthly price has gone up 60%.