Using inTELEconference(TM), from Hughes Network Systems (HNS), TVO will link up customers via a high-speed, low-cost videoconferencing service located in supermarkets and other free-standing locations in the U.S., with corresponding locations in Mexico, the first country in which this service will be offered.

Now residents in Southern California can go to a TVO location and pay a small fee to visit with their families and friends still living in Mexico. Birthdays, new babies, engagements, and a host of other family gatherings and celebrations can be shared across the miles through real-time videoconferencing.

"Many immigrants come to the U.S., but still maintain strong family ties to their country of origin," states Elias Chavando, chairman and chief executive officer, TVO Communications. "Although most people can now communicate via the telephone, what many people miss is actually seeing their family members -- watching the children grow, seeing boyfriends and girlfriends, meeting in-laws -- all the activities that only video can bring to life. We looked at the available technology and realized that the satellite-based inTELEconference network from HNS offered us the highest-quality videoconferencing available. In addition, the fixed monthly operating costs allow us to plan our business with a measure of certainty unattainable from any other technology."

Mexico, like many parts of the world, does not have an established land- based telecommunications infrastructure and satellite communications offer the only cost-effective, easy-to-install system that can be deployed quickly. Taking advantage of inTELEconference's unique ability to be located anywhere, whatever the geography or the existing infrastructure, TVO Communications not only offers services to the general public, but also offers connectivity and service for corporations that need videoconferencing in these hard-to-reach places. Essentially a plug-and-play system, TVO's network allows corporate users to instantly start videoconferencing with their remote sites.

The inTELEconference system uses a very small aperture terminal (VSAT) at each remote videoconference site using full-mesh network architecture. A single network control center (NCC) allows easy, reservation-based scheduling and operation of the remote stations and conferences. It polls the remote conference sites to determine status, transmits conference information, manages scheduling, and controls all the satellite access configurations. Each inTELEconference allows several different conferencing modes to suit any application or desired communication format. These include point-to-point, multipoint, and broadcast.

"This entrepreneurial application of inTELEconference adds yet another use for the industry's fastest, least-expensive, and best-quality videoconferencing system," said Dennis Conti, vice president, satellite networks division, HNS. "More traditional applications for inTELEconference include distance learning, business communications between remote sites, and telemedicine, but TVO have really pushed this into a new realm -- that of the consumer. They have been able to do this because no other system offers the versatility and pricing that this one does."

The initial locations in the U.S. are all in California at Huntington Park, Santa Ana, Anaheim, Wilmington, San Fernando Valley, Oxnard, Pico Rivera, and two in Los Angeles. Multiple Mexican centers are to be located in Durango, Guanajuato, Jalisco, Michoacan, Mexico City, Nayarit, Puebla and Zacatecas.

In conjunction with the leading, two-way HNS VSAT equipment TVO will incorporate the high-quality Sony TriniCom 5100 SuperSite videoconferencing system.

TVO Communications, Inc., is a privately held corporation specialized in satellite network integration and service. Headquartered in Studio City, Calif. and with offices throughout Mexico and Latin America.