03/18/96 CYBERSURF'S UP--AT A KIOSK NEAR YOU

CYBERSURF'S UP--AT A KIOSK NEAR YOU

THESE DAYS, THERE SEEMS TO be a public computer kiosk for every need--from terminals that make personalized greeting cards to bank machines that dispense money or transfer funds. So why not one for pay-as-you-go surfing on the Internet and World Wide Web?
That's what a San Diego company called AtcomInfo Inc. plans to install in airports and hotel lobbies. Developed with help from Stellcom Technologies, a nearby engineering company, the Internet kiosk will charge customers, via credit or debit card, about $3 for 10 minutes or as much as $20 for one hour of online time. Company officials expect the main use will be reading and answering E-mail. With help from AtcomInfo's server, the kiosks will provide easy but secure access to mailboxes anywhere else on the Internet, including such commercial services as CompuServe Inc. and America Online Inc. But kiosk users will also be able to browse the World Wide Web and Usenet bulletin boards. With a 124,000-bit-per-second Internet connection, the kiosks will provide much better performance than the typical laptop-and-modem setup most working travelers use.
EDITED BY PAUL M. ENG