PLANO, Texas, Nov 17, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) — –Combination of Wideband and Narrowband RF Technology Enables Downstream/Upstream Channel Solutions of Four-by-Four, Eight-by-Four, or Larger for Scalable DOCSIS 3.0 Services
Microtune(R), Inc. (NASDAQ:TUNE) today introduced the MT1570 wideband upstream amplifier, the latest addition to the Company’s portfolio of radio frequency (RF) silicon products supporting the cable industry’s new DOCSIS(R) 3.0 specification. A companion product to Microtune’s DOCSIS(R) wideband and narrowband tuners, the new MT1570 upstream amplifier enables an impressive 120-Mbps upstream pipeline, significantly increasing performance, data rate and reliability for bandwidth-intensive DOCSIS 3.0 services.
The tuner and amplifier constitute the two-way RF gateway for DOCSIS 3.0 downstream and upstream channel-bonded communications. By providing a cost-effective solution for bonding together four upstream channels, the MT1570 completes Microtune’s DOCSIS 3.0 front-end product offering. With its tuner and amplifier portfolio, the Company offers the only one-stop, all-silicon DOCSIS 3.0 RF solutions in production today.
source: corporate-ir.ne
CableLabs® has awarded certification status for Data over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS®) 3.0 cable modems to Ambit, Arris, Cisco, Motorola for two modems; and SMC. This represents the first certification of DOCSIS 3.0 cable modems. CableLabs also awarded “full” qualification status for Cable Modem Termination Systems (CMTS) to Casa Systems for two devices. This is the first qualification of a DOCSIS 3.0 CMTS representing “full” or complete compliance with all requirements of the DOCSIS 3.0 specification for headends. Motorola received bronze qualification for its CMTS.
“We have now achieved successful certification testing for a system of very high-speed cable data products,” said Brian L. Roberts, Chairman and CEO of Comcast Corp., and Chairman of the CableLabs Board of Directors. “This is a great accomplishment, ensuring that cable customers will continue to have access to the fastest Internet service available, along with access to more advanced service offerings,” he added.
“Congratulations to the successful vendors and to the CableLabs staff who have worked so hard to help our industry bring the goals and objectives of the DOCSIS 3.0 project to fruition,” said CableLabs President and CEO Dr. Richard R. Green. “This is a great success for our industry and demonstrates how adopting a flexible program can speed solutions to our industry.”
DOCSIS 3.0 achieves the higher data rates through channel bonding in both the upstream and downstream directions. In addition, DOCSIS 3.0 is backward compatible with all existing DOCSIS products. Another key element of DOCSIS 3.0 is Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6). IPv6 also will allow cable operators to effectively manage the proliferation of devices that are capturing consumer interest, including portable media players, cellular phones, gaming consoles, PDAs and others.
The headends were tested under a tiered program that was created as a way to encourage CMTS makers to submit gear for testing earlier than they otherwise might have done. CableLabs also offered suppliers numerous informal interoperability events where vendors worked together in CableLabs’ facilities to test and evaluate their implementations of the specifications.
The three-tiered program for CMTS qualification—bronze, silver and full—progressively scales compliance with some of the more long term DOCSIS 3.0 CMTS requirements. DOCSIS 3.0 modem testing allows only one level of certification that evaluates compliance with the complete DOCSIS modem specification.
source: cablelabs.com
J:COM, which has already been aggressively deploying speedy “Wideband” services, will have Docsis 3.0 deployed in all of its systems by the end of July, according to Mitsuo Yoshida, deputy general manager for J:COM’s engineering division.
Yoshida, speaking here Thursday on a Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT)-sponsored panel discussion, said the technology was deployed in about 15 of its 42 systems as of March 2008. J:COM is using the platform to power a high-end “NET Ultra” service that caps shared downstream speeds at 160 Mbit/s via the bonding of four 6MHz channels. The non-bonded upstream bandwidth for the product is capped at 10 Mbit/s.
Yoshida said his company has been very keen to get Docsis 3.0 equipment rolled out, citing heavy competition from telcos that are using either fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP) or advanced VDSL to deliver speeds in excess of 100 Mbit/s.
J:COM’s Docsis 3.0 deployment is still in the early stages, but 25 percent of all new Internet subscribers signed up for the 160 Mbit/s service in the first quarter of 2008. J:COM ended the first quarter with about 27,000 Ultra customers, and has about 30,000 today, most of them coming on board since mid-April. “That figure is bigger than we expected,” Yoshida said.
Although J:COM started some pre-Docsis 3.0 work last year with Arris Group Inc. (Nasdaq: ARRS), the operator has since centered its Docsis 3.0 cable modem termination system (CMTS) deployment strategy on the Motorola Inc. (NYSE: MOT) BSR 64000 model. J:COM is also deploying 3.0-certified modems from Motorola, but just signed up Cisco Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO) as a second source for Wideband modems. (See J:COM Bonds With Motorola and J:COM Picks Cisco Modems .)
All three of those vendors have won Docsis 3.0 modem certifications from CableLabs , and received “Bronze” qualification for their respective CMTSs. (See Docsis 3.0 Gear Tracker II.)
J:COM is “such a major focus for us and the industry, in general,” said Kevin Keefe, VP of global marketing and product management for Motorola’s Access Networks Solution unit. He said video streaming and downloading will drive Docsis 3.0 and channel bonding, citing research from ABI Research that consumers will view 70 billion videos via the Internet annually by 2012.
source: lightreading.com
Portfolio showcases innovation and experience in Motorola’s broadband voice and data services that are making a difference for customers
Horsham, PA – 21 February 2008 – Motorola, Inc. (NYSE: MOT) today took the wraps off its full line of DOCSIS 3.0-based customer premises equipment (CPE) designed to deliver high-capacity cable voice and data services. Coming on the heels of several pre-DOCSIS 3.0 commercial deployments, the product line of cable and digital voice modems is further evidence of Motorola’s commitment to proven bandwidth-expansion technologies in the cable industry.
New products for residential and commercial cable services – Motorola’s DOCSIS 3.0 SURFboard® product line interoperates with Motorola’s DOCSIS 3.0 CMTS platform and other DOCSIS 3.0-qualified CMTS industry solutions.
Motorola DOCSIS 3.0 CPE portfolio:
- Motorola SB6120 SURFboard Cable Modem – Provides operators with an economic option for user data throughput approximating 160 Mbps in DOCSIS mode and 195 Mbps in Euro-DOCSIS mode, without the need for a hybrid fiber coax (HFC) plant upgrade. It supports all DOCSIS 3.0 standards including channel bonding, both IPv4 and IPv6, and advanced encryption services.
- Motorola SBV6120 SURFboard Digital Voice Modem – Builds on the SB6120 and offers up to two lines of full-featured digital voice service.
- Motorola SBV6220 SURFboard Digital Voice Modem – Builds on the SBV6120 and offers Lithium-ion battery backup, which can provide backup power during a power outage.
“Motorola has been a leader in DOCSIS from day one, and we’ve made a significant investment in time and money to deliver the best portfolio of DOCSIS 3.0 CPE possible,” said Alan Lefkof, corporate vice president, Motorola Broadband Solutions Group. “From enhancing code and design reviews, to adding extensive protection from cordless phone interference and power surges, we have paid attention to every detail in the launch of these products. Add to that Motorola’s expertise in media networking and service assurance, and cable operators can be confident that the CPE announced today will also lead the way toward new revenue-generating, whole-home services in the future.”
“TI is proud to support Motorola and the MSO community to help drive the quick, industry-wide adoption of standards based DOCSIS 3.0,” said Dennis Rauschmayer, Texas Instruments Digital Connected Home General Manager. “We are confident that the selection of TI’s Puma 5, the first standards compliant DOCSIS 3.0 chip, will enable consumers to experience higher transfer speeds and next generation video and voice services.”
The first to commercialize channel bonding, Motorola is now offering cable and digital voice modems that support all DOCSIS 3.0 features including channel bonding, IPv6, and advanced encryption services. The modems enable channel bonding of up to four downstream channels and four upstream channels, which allows an operator to offer their customers advanced multimedia services with data throughput approximating 160 Mbps in DOCSIS mode and 195 Mbps in Euro-DOCSIS mode–all without upgrading the HFC plant. Motorola’s SURFboard DOCSIS 3.0 CPE portfolio also enables operators to:
- Protect their installed base of high-speed data customers
- Deliver new high-value / high-bandwidth, multimedia services
- Deliver competitive, high-capacity commercial services to their business customers
Motorola’s DOCSIS 3.0 SURFboard CPE can be self-installed through the product’s intuitive rear panel icon and color coding connection guide. Troubleshooting is simplified via the product’s easy-to-read, front-panel operational status LEDs. Operators can also optionally activate dual-colored LEDs for their customer to have visual verification of bonded channels and GigE link use.
A key differentiator for Motorola’s DOCSIS 3.0 CPE line is that it is designed for Service Assurance – Quality of Service (QoS) at the edge of the network – compatible with Motorola’s NBBS Device Management Platform and with Motorola’s eCare web-enabled interactive support solution.
Motorola’s proven DOCSIS 3.0 CMTS portfolio enables operators to:
- Commercially deploy DOCSIS 3.0 downstream channel bonding today
- Reduce cost per downstream channel by more than 60%
- Simultaneously support DOCSIS 1.x, 2.0 and new DOCSIS 3.0 feature sets
source: motorola.com
I hope broadband competition in the New York City area is the wave of the future. The region, which is densely populated, has three Internet service providers vying for customers. And since Time Warner Cable announced yesterday that it will deploy DOCSIS 3.0 to the city, the area also will soon have competing super-fast broadband offerings from all three providers. Verizon touts its FiOS service there, and Cablevision already offers DOCSIS 3.0 and just launched speeds of 101 Mbps to Long Island residents.
A lot has been written about the merits of Verizon’s fiber to the home vs. AT&T’s fiber to the node and U-verse services, but we haven’t spent a lot of time on DOCSIS 3.0 deployments. Sure, it will provide ultrafast broadband, such as the 101 Mbps services that Cablevision is offering or the 50 Mbps that Comcast boasts. But for providers, the upgrade makes a tremendous amount of sense for business reasons beyond happy customers — so much so, that 45 percent of the country will have access to D3 rollouts by the end of this year, according to data from research firm Pike & Fisher. (See chart for provider details.)
For a relatively small investment, cable providers get upgraded to a faster service that has benefits such as IPv6 addressing capabilities. They also can offer fiber-like speeds to business customers without spending more money to deploy fiber. Cable providers have seen growth in residential services stay relatively flat, so they’re looking to business access and interactive advertising to grow. D3 doesn’t really affect advertising, but it is an attractive offer to dangle in front of corporate users.
source: gigaom.com
I’m still on vacation here, but of course that doesn’t mean the news stops. Motorola racked up another DOCSIS 3.0 win today with Japan’s largest broadband operator, Jupiter Telecommunications (J:COM). The deal includes both Motorola CMTSs (the BSR 64000) and cable modems (the SB6120s). For some reason the press release isn’t showing up on the Motorola media center, so I thought it worth drawing attention to the announcement. Even as CableLabs certification waves roll on, channel-bonding deployments continue around the world for those who don’t want to wait. Particularly in parts of Asia where the 100 Mb home is expected, waiting for channel bonding isn’t really an option.
source: connectedhome2go.com
In a serendipitous moment, I had a call this morning to talk about DOCSIS 3.0 CPE updates, and I learned that J:COM in Japan has completed trials and is starting to install Motorola’s channel-bonding modems in subscriber homes TODAY. The latest status reports from the lab have found no issues with the SB6120 modems, and J:COM is apparently eager to fulfill subscriber orders coming in. Word is that thousands of users have already signed up for the DOCSIS 3.0 service.
The SB6120 modems are the same ones awaiting certification from CableLabs, but interestingly, they are meeting far more difficult requirements in J:COM’s deployment than they’re likely to see in the Cert Wave process. Cable operators almost always need enhancements to CableLabs-certified devices to make them work with their unique networks. For example: specific user interface customizations, technical reporting capabilities and redundancy support. I guess a standard can only go so far.
There was other thing I had confirmed on my call this morning. Motorola has a DOCSIS 3.0 voice platform (i.e. not just data-only CPE) that is ready for lab testing at customer sites.
source: connectedhome2go.com
The Certification Wave 58 results are out! Motorola received DOCSIS 3.0 certification for its SB6120 and SBV6220 cable modems and DOCSIS 3.0 bronze qualification for the Motorola BSR 64000 cable modem termination system (CMTS). I had a chance to sit down quickly with Motorola’s Chris Kohler to discuss the modem certifications and recorded the conversation/interview in a podcast. The recording runs a bit longer than eight minutes: the first 2-3 minutes are specifically on the certification and first deployment of these DOCSIS 3.0 modems; the next section is on worldwide DOCSIS 3.0 trends, including the US; and the final section after about five minutes is on the future of Motorola’s modem and gateway products. (Think media servers.)
source: connectedhome2go.com
After interviewing Chris Kohler about the modems that passed CableLabs Cert Wave 58, it seemed only fair to talk with Motorola’s Mike Cookish as well about the bronze DOCSIS 3.0 qualification of Motorola’s cable modem termination system (CMTS). The interview is about 16 minutes long and fairly technical, so for those of you not interested in listening to the whole thing, there are a few choice quotes below the audio link.
On DOCSIS 3.0 speeds:
“Our customer J:COM in Japan on April 25th just launched a 160-megabit service.”
On DOCSIS 3.0 in the US:
“My expectation is that by the end of 2008, the top major operators [in the US]… will be in some form of deployment stage for channel bonding in most parts of their network.”
On the need for both greater overall upstream capacity and peak upstream bandwidth capacity
“The reality is that when operators really want to begin to deploy full-scale, widely-available, production-ready upstream channel bonding they’re going to need two things: they’re going to need to increase the capacity of the number of upstreams for fiber node or neighborhood, and then number two, they’re naturally going to need the DOCSIS 3.0 upstream channel bonding solution.
So in Motorola’s case, we’re working on the upstream portion of our decoupled I-CMTS solution called the RX32 that will provide 32 upstream channels per single card as well as upstream channel bonding, and it’s the two of these that we believe will give the operator the optimum mix of increased average capacity as well as increased peak bandwidth for channel bonding.”
source: connectedhome2go.com