ISP owners start firm after non-compete clause ends

The business cycle has come full circle for Brian Amerman and Scott Musser. A few years ago, they were Internet service providers. Amerman and members of his family owned SunLink Inc., in Sunbury, Northumberland County. Musser owned LebaNet Inc., a Lebanon ISP.

Both companies were sold about two years ago to OneMain.com of Reston, Va., which merged with EarthLink Inc. in September 2000. Today, Amerman and Musser are back in business.

Amerman is president of PaISP Inc., a Lebanon corporation that operates Joust.net. Musser is a PaISP consultant. Ben Amerman, Brian's brother, has also started EvenLink, an ISP in Sunbury that has already gathered 1,700 customers.

Since Musser signed a non-competition agreement with OneMain, he was legally barred until earlier this year from taking an ownership role with PaISP, which has gained 1,600 customers since it started business in May 2000. Musser is also president and Amerman is a partner with PaCLEC, a Lebanon telephone company that started late last year. PaCLEC will sell digital subscriber lines and other broadband (anything faster than a dial-up modem) Internet access if the state Public Utility Commission gives the company final approval this fall to operate. Both businesses are housed in the same building.