HughesNet used for commutation during the San Diego Fires

If you are in the path of the San Diego fires, please know that HughesNet is here to help. This is just one of many ways we are assisting people in emergency situations. We have a team on site uploading backup data and supporting emergency responders and others as they can, with equipment we had on-site before the fire hit, and equipment donated by colleagues at Hughes HQ. If you need assistance call our 24/7 customer care line at 1-800-668-1333 and we'll be happy to help.

We are also working with our service provider, Frontier Communications, to get them on the ground in Southern California as soon as possible. For more information about HughesNet's Customer Care line and other ways to help during the crisis, please visit hughsnet.com/helpusrecover . Thanks for staying safe and for your understanding!

HughesNet is actively providing emergency internet service via satellite phone or wireless broadband where available to people in the path of the San Diego fires.

HughesNet has partnered with Frontier Communications to provide emergency broadband internet access via satellite phone in areas where communication services have been lost or affected by the fires. Frontier Communications will be active on an accelerated schedule, providing service where it is not available from other carriers.

The San Diego fires are a serious natural disaster, but we understand we are not the only people impacted by these fires. Being in the path of a major natural disaster can't be an excuse to not come up with your own way to help. However, HughesNet is here to provide as many ways you can help during this crisis.

Know Where Your You Are You don't need to have a satellite dish or dishwasher for HughesNet's wireless broadband service. Just plug one of our little USB sticks into any computer, and you're online. We have these special emergency satellite phones for use in areas where satellites and towers are not available. And if you know a business that can help by providing power to these devices (for example, at a charging station), we've got the right equipment for them to use as well.

The Power of Technology With the tools we have in place from our partnership with Frontier, we will be able to bring the power of technology to those most affected by this devastating crisis. HughesNet has been bringing the right tools to people since 1999. And we'll continue to do it as long as there is someone out there who needs us to help them out.

More than anything else, HughesNet will continue to offer support and condolences. For everyone who has been affected by this tragedy, we are truly sorry for your losses. The partnership between Frontier Communications and HughesNet will play a major role in bringing relief to the affected areas. I think it is a testament to our industry as a whole that we can come together when needed and hopefully deliver some form of comfort and aid to those who have been affected by these wildfires. I'd like to thank Frontier Communications' CEO Maggie Wilderotter for taking time out of her schedule and putting her faith in us so early on. It's thanks to her that we were able to get these systems up so quickly.

Thanks to Maggie and to our customers, because of you we have the resources to help our neighbors out. When most people find themselves in such a terrible situation, they don't know what to do or where to turn. And we thank HughesNet for lending their support so early on during this crisis. We wish everyone in the path of the fires all the best, and I hope time heals all wounds.

Thanks for reading,

I'm Rohn S. Knudsen, and I'm one of the few people in the world who can tell you about the worst jobs he's ever had. I've worked in factories, flown helicopters, cooked at a restaurant and even cleaned toilets in Japan. Those are all clean jobs compared to working as a satellite engineer where you have to troubleshoot why the satellites aren't working and try to fix them without an instruction manual.

I enjoyed writing this article because I enjoy talking about my experiences with HughesNet. And I hope that sometime in the future you will find yourself needing our service and come talk to us about it personally. If you're interested in learning more about me, send me an email or come visit my blog on the Internet at: www.rohnknudsen.com

The big question to ask yourself is why are you using satellite internet to begin with? Are you living in a remote area that only communications satellites can provide service? Are you a marine or air navigator, and do you need to send messages back home for accurate GPS positioning? Or are you somewhere where there is no cable or fiber optic service available (Estimated 0.08% of North America). In most cases, if your Internet provider doesn't offer DSL or cable service, it's because their equipment can't handle the distance. In other words, they're either too cheap to put equipment on their lines or they don't feel they can make enough of a profit by providing service to you. It's as simple as that.

I will say that I have never let a customer down...and I'll go further than that: For many years I was the tech most likely to go out of my way for a customer. Out of all the techs at Hughesnet, I had the best customers...because I actually WANTED them to be my customers again! When my region (about 15 states) was instructed by upper management not to honor any extended contract discounts, I went ahead and honored them anyway. I tried to fight the outcome of these decisions, but I didn't have the authority. (I'm still disappointed that HughesNet has been willing to sacrifice profit margins by keeping customers...) It was a long, painful battle, but I got them back on track in no time.

HughesNet in general is still a great service - it's just become harder and harder to try and earn extra money and be able to send money back home to my family. When you're selling that much internet, your margin is very small. Anyway, there's more trouble in this area because of the Iraq war and Hurricane Katrina - it's unlikely we'll get another contract over there (and definitely not at present rates). To make matters worse, the local area I live in has around 20 competitors for satellite internet service (most don't even offer the same speeds), so if my company doesn't get a contract, it means the revenue they were getting here will likely be split up by my competitors.

Anyway, enough of that. I love HughesNet and hope you'll decide to choose us too! We've got a great service to offer at an unbeatable price! It really is the best deal on the web - you can't find anything that's cheaper than what we're offering. Here's how our plans compare to our competition:

1. Satellite Internet Solutions  - $700/month for 10GB (no speed upgrades...

Conclusion

As you can see, HughesNet has better deals for several of the competitors. They offer lower prices and higher data caps at comparable speeds. If we could receive an update from our parent company on this issue, we would be able to compare the prices to them as well. I can't really tell you how much faster their satellite signal is compared to ours, but all I can say is that they work great in my area. They don't have any trouble pulling around 30Mbps down and 15Mbps up, while we have a maximum of 20Mbps down and 10Mbps up.