DOCSIS 3.0’s Transformative Moment

By John Dahlquist -- Multichannel News, 6/28/2010 12:01:00 AM

As the Federal Communications Commission continues promoting an ambitious National Broadband Plan, with a key goal of bringing affordable data services at 100 Megabits per second to 100 million homes, cable already is playing a leading role to meet, and even exceed, part of that objective.

The cable industry is transforming the nation’s households and economy by delivering advanced highspeed Internet connectivity to consumers and businesses. Cable’s ongoing rollout of DOCSIS 3.0 technology in much of the nation will provide 100-Mbps data speeds to households, addressing one of the FCC’s key goals.

DOCSIS 3.0 is poised to reach maximum market penetration. Research firm Pike & Fischer forecasts that the nation’s biggest cable operators will have systems in place that can cover close to 100% of their service areas with DOCSIS 3.0 capabilities by the end of 2010. Other cable operators are expected to cover 100% of their territories before the close of 2013.

To deliver 100-Mbps broadband speeds, cable operators are evolving their existing networks with two powerful technology weapons: Fiber Deep and, in some cases, fiber to the home.

Cable operators are pushing fiber deeper into their networks to support faster data speeds. Fiber Deep reduces the number of active components in a cable network, which in turns reduces power costs by as much as 50%. Overall, Fiber Deep can help cable operators reduce operational and maintenance costs by as much as 65%, thus improving their operating performance.

Cable operators also are pushing fiber to the doorsteps of households and businesses in a number of low-density markets with RFoG (Radio Frequency over Glass) technology. Rural regions represent a tremendous opportunity for cable fiber deployments, given that it’s more cost-effective to build RFoG networks in low-density areas than in higher-density urban and suburban markets.

Cable also is deploying other technologies, such as digital return, to deliver advanced high-speed data services to consumers. Digital return addresses returnpath issues associated with upstream channel bonding within DOCSIS 3.0 deployments. Through this type of solution and others, cable can make DOCSIS 3.0 an even more powerful, two-way platform for highspeed- data services.

In addition, the cable industry is ready to support broadband plan initiatives intended to stimulate the U.S. economy.

Cable is delivering robust broadband to businesses of all sizes, in some cases offering Gigabit Ethernet connectivity and carrier-class reliability to the enterprise sector.

For small- and medium-sized businesses, cable operators provide competitive and reliable high-speed data services with the current networks they have in place. With a sturdy and affordable broadband connection, cable operators can help these small- and medium-sized businesses reach a global audience with products and services.

Regulators want reasonably priced high-speed Internet connections for consumers and businesses. Cable can meet — even exceed — the national broadband plan’s goals for delivering ultra-fast, ubiquitous and affordable data services.

With cable operators evolving the networks they have in place, and by minimizing operational expenditures and other costs, cable can help transform the nation’s broadband landscape.

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John Dahlquist is vice president of marketing at Aurora Networks.