FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Nationwide Satellite
1-888-892-2434
Tempe, Arizona, March 27, 2006 — Hughes is excited to launch several new
Services. We will introduce a new mail system, Hughes.net mail,
which gives our customers powerful features, like 2 GB of storage per account.
We will also introduce two new Service Assurance plans, giving customers the
peace of mind that their service will be quickly restored in the event a problem
occurs that requires onsite maintenance. Finally, all new customers will enjoy a
new start page that provides them a HughesNet homepage they can personalize,
as well as all the important links to Hughes Net services (Customer Care, etc.).
New HughesNet Mail
HUGHESNET is excited to introduce a new mail system for all Hughes Net
accounts. The Hughes.net mail system will give customers many new features
and capabilities. You won't need to worry about a full email box with 2 GB of
storage per account! Here's a look at the list of features our customers will enjoy:
- 2 GB Storage per mailbox
- New Spam Protection
- New Anti-Virus Protection
- New Web Mail Interface
- IMAP, POP, and SMTP support
- Use any email program!
- Ability to block individual senders
- Personal folders
- Ability to add mail accounts to webmail (gmail, yahoo, etc.)
New customers' email addresses will be structured in the following way:
JohnSmith@hughes.net or mybusiness@hughes.net. All existing customers will
be moved to hughes.net accounts as well. (All myname@direcway.com accounts
will transition to Hughes.net accounts this month.)
HughesNet Service Assurance
To better meet the needs of our customers, Hughes Net is launching two new
service protection plans: Service Assurance and Service Assurance Plus. For a
small monthly fee and per site visit co-pay, customers can elect for 2nd business
day or next business day service for repairs that require onsite attention. Service
Assurance provides peace of mind that the problem will be resolved in 1 or 2
day’s time. This is especially important if the customer is a business, when
downtime means loss of revenue.
Service Assurance is a step up from to the limited equipment warranty that is
included in all HughesNet service plans (15 month limited warranty for Home and
Professional; 24 month warranty for Small Office and Business Internet). The
key difference in the warranty versus Service Assurance is response time, If a
problem should arise with the satellite modem, for example, the warranty
provides a new one to be shipped in 3-5 days (for customer to swap out and ship
the malfunctioning one back). For satellite dish problems, a technician may arrive
onsite up to 10 days after the service call. This loss of service should not be
expected, but it can be protected against with Service Assurance.
Both Service Assurance Plans include:
- Live technical support (toll-free)
24 hours a day, 7 days a week
- In-home service / On-site business service
While most problems are solved with a simple phone call, if it can’t be fixed over the phone, a Hughes Net certified technician will come to your location to restore
your service for only $29.95.
- What's included:
- Diagnostic testing to determine the cause of the problem
- Power surge related repair
- Antenna realignments (using existing mounting configuration)
- Repair or replacement of malfunctioning equipment
- Cost of all parts required to restore service
- What's NOT included:
- Natural disasters (Acts of ‘God’)
- Misuse or abuse of the equipment
- (see legal.hughesnet.com for complete listing)
- Fast response! Your choice: next business day or 2nd business day
Hughes offers a nationwide network of certified technicians, so you can count on getting technical support when you need it — at home or at your office. Choose second business day or next business day response time and be assured your service will be restored quickly!
- Upfront pricing
HughesNet Service Assurance: 
$5.95/month for 2nd business day service
+ $29.95 co-pay for onsite maintenance
HughesNet Service Assurance Plus: $12.95/month for next business day service
+ $29.95 co-pay for onsite maintenance
Service Assurance and Service Assurance Plus are available with ALL Hughes Net service plans.
- If customer chooses a Home or Professional plan with Promotional Pricing:
HughesNet Service Assurance: $0 for 15 months (after 15 mo., $5.95/mo.)
+ $29.95 co-pay for onsite maintenance
HughesNet Service Assurance Plus upgrade: $7.00/month for next business day service (after 15 mo., $12.95/mo.) + $29.95 co-pay for onsite maintenance
If a customer selects HOME or Professional service under the Promotional plan
they will automatically receive Service Assurance as part of this plan. They can,
however, select to upgrade to Service Assurance Plus for $7.00/month for 15
months (after which, they will be charged $12.95/month.)
On-site maintenance (co-pay) is NOT included under the promotional plan. If
onsite maintenance is required, a fee of $29.95 will be charged to the customer
(via the same method of payment as they are charged for monthly service.) This
fee may also be called "dispatch co-pay".
- How customers order:
Service Assurance and Service Assurance Plus can be ordered during the initial
order. After the initial order, customers can order these protection plans online
through the myHughesNet.com customer portal. Cancellations must be called
into Customer Care: 1-866-347-3292. Service Assurance plans can be cancelled
at any time, without penalty. More information about the terms and conditions of
Service Assurance is available at legal.hughesnet.com.
HughesNet Start Page
Hughes Net subscribers can now completely customize their online experience by
logging on to www.myHughesNet.com. From news and financial reports to up-
to-date sports and weather information, HughesNet users can select the content
they want displayed on their My Hughes Net homepage.
Accessible Customer Support
In addition to personalized content, users will continue to have links to important
HughesNet services, such as Customer Care. Hughes has created one-click access
to customer support for subscribers from the new HughesNet START page. We
want our customers to have direct access to our customer support team as soon as
they log in.
HughesNet Start page includes:
- World-class search powered by the Internet's leading providers
- Robust content from industry-leading sources
- Full- portal personalization - all with no banners
all news releases
