| General Overview of Satellite Providers | HughesNet | Other Guy |
| Total satellite installations in United Sates | 325,000 | 150,000 |
| Total satellite installations worldwide | 1,000,000 | 150,000 |
| Number of operational satellites | 12 | 2 |
| Years providing Satellite Internet service | 10 years | 2 year |
| Years in business operation | 30 years | 6 years |
| Manufactures satellite system equipment | Yes | No |
| Manufactures communications satellites | Yes | No |
| Services US government and US military | Yes | No |
| Services large-business, enterprise (Fortune 1000) customers | Yes | No |
| Services small to medium business customers | Yes | No |
| Services home-office and residential customers | Yes | Yes |
| Number of network operations centers (NOC) | 3 | 1 |
| Owner and manager of network operations center (NOC) | Yes | No |
| Installation available nationwide | Yes | No |
| $0 Up-front plans available for residential service | Yes | No |
| Proprietary network security and encryption infrastructure | Yes | No |
| Uses Internet Protocol Over Satellite standard (IPos) | Yes | No |
| System requires customer to install software for normal operation | No | Yes |
| Limitation on number of computers connected to system | No | Yes |
| Static IP Available | Yes | No |
| System warranty (Parts) | 24 months parts and labor |
12 months parts 90 days labor |
| Repair warranty service calls (Labor) | Free | $75/hr after 90 days |
| Fair Access Policy (FAP) Maximum Recover Time | 24 hour refresh² | 30 day refresh¹ |
| Satisfaction Guarantee, Return Policy | 30 Day | None |
| Fee if cancelled before installation | None | $50 |
| Free Site Survey, on the day of installation. | Yes | No |
| UNLIMITED DOWNLOADS for 3 hrs per day.³ | Yes | No |
| Larger Dish Installed for better performance and signal strength. | Yes | No |
| ¹ | The WildBlue Fair Access Policy (FAP) is based on a rolling 30 day limit on data usage per customer called a usage threshold. If you exceed the FAP threshold, your bandwidth (speed) will be reduced for the remainder of the 30 day period when your system quota refreshes and you are again within your limits. During this period, your bandwidth will be reduced to 28Kbps until your system refreshes. |
| ² | The HughesNet Fair Access Policy (FAP) is based on cumulative download threshold for a set volume of data and is not based on a 30 day period. While you are using up your allotted bandwidth, your system is also refreshing. If you exceed the FAP threshold, your bandwidth (speed) will be reduced for a period of time until your system quota refreshes and you are again within your limits. During this period, your bandwidth will be reduced to 56-400Kbps until your system refreshes. This typically takes from 12-24 hours depending on your usage. |
| ³ | HughesNet offers 3 hours of unlimited/unmetered downloads from 3-6 EST on all residential plans. |