I’ve been collecting content from panels, conversations, and demos, but it takes time to turn that raw information into coherent posts. So in the meantime, here’s a selection of photos from the Motorola booth on The Cable Show floor: 3D TV, new DOCSIS 3.0 retail modems, Internet apps on the set-top, and more.
source: connectedhome2go.com
It looks like the folks at TWC are bad losers. They are now considering dropping the planned rollout of DOCSIS 3.0high speed citing that it was part of their plan for consumption based billing.
In other words, if they are not going to get the blood money they planned from CBB, they might not feel the need to roll out wideband (even though they are not implicitly tied). Alex Dudley, VP of public relations for Time Warner explains via his twitter feed:
@gigastacey it was scheduled as part of cbb trial, but we all know how you feel about that.
@netpro2k It doesn’t…just that the rollout was scheduled with the trial and now all of it is on hold.
@Stryph Biggest cost is actually bandwidth allocation.
Obviously, if they are concerned about another major public backlash, they had damn well better come through with this. As a TWC customer, I will definitely be one of those people shaking my fist. [PCMag]
source: gizmodo.com
Comcast gave a bit more detail on the state of their DOCSIS 3.0 upgrades at the CableNEXT Conference this week in Santa Clara, California. Comcast CTO Tony Werner told attendees that the company hopes to have Docsis 3.0 technology in place in around 20 percent of the company’s footprint by the end of next year. DOCSIS 3.0, as we’ve frequently noted, should allow the operator to eventually offer speeds in excess of 100Mbps.
Werner wouldn’t elaborate on which markets will see deployment first, but you can be sure they’ll mirror FiOS deployment. You can also be sure that users won’t see full capacity at first, the initial offerings being in the 20-50Mbps range. What about upstream speeds? Light Reading says the upgrades will focus on downstream bandwidth at first:
Although the full Docsis 3.0 specification calls for the bonding of at least four upstream and four downstream channels, initial Comcast deployments will be a downstream-only affair. That’s more a reflection of the status of upstream channel bonding technology than one of Comcast’s Docsis 3.0 service strategy. Docsis 3.0 upstream channel bonding won’t likely won’t be ready for prime time until late next year or possibly 2009.
That’s definitely going to initially hurt Comcast’s fight against FiOS, as Verizon just started offering symmetrical 15Mbps and 20Mbps service wherever FiOS is available.
source: dslreports.com
It’s official as of this morning. CableLabs announced that the “tru2way™” brand will replace use of the term “OpenCable Platform.” You may recall that the initiative, which began back in ‘97 with the goal of helping the cable industry deploy interactive services, was previous known as OCAP.
Why the name change?
The tru2way brand was developed by the global brand consulting firm Siegel + Gale, in consultation with the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing (CTAM), the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA), and marketing and technology representatives of a variety of major cable providers.
Which basically means that, based on talking with consumers, it was felt that a new name would help with branding. Manufacturers can then make products under that name.
For example: Panasonic and Comcast Announce Products With Tru2way(TM) Technology. Specifically, this means that you’ll be able to soon be able to get a portable DVR which you can take on the road, watching those TV shows you recorded.
source: cabletechtalk.com