January 29, 2001
Web posted at: 4:16 p.m. EST (2116 GMT)

by Liane Gouthro

(IDG) -- America Online may be king of the easy-access Internet world, but it certainly isn't the only option for new users. Once a free-e-mail underdog, Juno has made strides toward becoming a serious Internet service provider, and this week released new software designed to make both its free and fee-based services easier to use.

Originally launched as a free e-mail service in 1996, Juno began offering Internet access in 1998. Its Juno Version 5.0 software streamlines the entire Internet-access process, more tightly integrating its e-mail service and the Web.

With earlier versions, you could access the Web only by connecting through Juno and then launching an external browser. This upgrade embeds a browser in the software for easier access.

"A lot of our users are newcomers to the Web, and we want to make it as easy as possible for them," says Gary Baker, a Juno spokesperson.

The browser window is somewhat reminiscent of AOL's main screen, though not nearly as busy. A new toolbar with direct links to the Web includes an always-present search feature that lets you conduct a search on LookSmart. It also features links to Juno's Web channels: News, Weather, Shopping, Yellow Pages, Stock Quotes, and Shopping, among others. All of the content is provided through Juno's partners. FoxNews.com supplies the news, while Weather.com provides the weather forecasts, for example.

Users who prefer to simply launch an external browser can still do so.

Get the message

Version 5.0 improves Juno's e-mail service, as well. It now supports HTML-formatted messages, and, for the first time, lets you change the colors, backgrounds, and fonts of messages. You can also embed images and photos into messages.

The upgrade adds a mail assistant feature, which lets you filter incoming and outgoing messages into designated folders. You can also request special alerts, and you can universally block or delete messages from certain addresses.

Retained in version 5.0 is a feature that makes life easier for e-mail users with a single phone line. Juno connects to the Internet only when you're sending or checking e-mail messages: The software automatically disconnects when you are reading or composing messages so that the phone line isn't unnecessarily tied up.

When you're using Juno's Internet access software, you remain connected for the duration. When you log on to Juno, you can select "E-Mail" or "Web" so that the program knows whether to maintain the connection.

To pay or not to pay?

Juno services are available in both a free version and a $14.95-per-month version. The free version includes a floating banner-ad window, although that window now displays only in-house advertisements because of a pending trademark-infringement lawsuit filed by rival NetZero. The paid version offers phone-based tech support to subscribers and gives them priority access to Juno's network.

"Several hundred dial-up numbers have been reserved for our billable subscribers, making it easier for them to get on and stay on," Baker says. "We see the free service as an on-ramp to the Internet, for first-time users. They can experience the Internet before they have to pay for it."

With its latest upgrade, is Juno ready to compete with the likes of AOL and MSN?

"We very much do compete with them. We have 4 million active subscribers. That makes us a major player," Baker says, adding that MSN also recently reported 4 million subscribers.

Of Juno's user base, though, only 842,000 use the paid version. But that doesn't mean that Juno doesn't have a future.

"Juno won't be directing the market, like AOL, but it can carve out its own niche," says Bruce Kasrel, a senior analyst with Forrester Research. "They are providing a service, nothing super-revolutionary, but they have a loyal group of users. [And] 4 million is nothing to sneeze at."

"They will continue to grow," Kasrel says. "They won't be 8 million users by next year, but they will see decent growth."

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Judge's order halts Juno's banner ads
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NetZero sues Juno, alleging patent infringement
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A first look at AOL 6
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Juno Online Services, Inc.

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