CED articles from February 2006

CED archives from February 2006

Here we go again.(satellite communications services)
February 1, 2006... DBS does video very well. In the U.S., it has attracted more than 27 million subs. What DBS has been unable to do (so far) is come to market with a high-speed bundle that doesn't rely on partnering with telephony companies in some sort of a...

Motorola acquisition beefs up M-CMTS plans.(upfront: LATEST NEWS AND INSIGHT)(Broadband Innovations Inc.)
February 1, 2006... Motorola Inc. has sealed a deal to buy the cable network technology assets of Broadband Innovations Inc. (BI), a closely-held RF and digital technology developer based in San Diego. Motorola, maker of the BSR family of CMTSs and a BI...

Concurrent gets RAM tough.(upfront: LATEST NEWS AND INSIGHT)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2006... Targeting bigger storage and higher ingest rates, Concurrent Computer Corp. has unveiled the MediaHawk 4500, a RAM-based video-on-demand system. Concurrent execs said the system can hook into its existing disk-based VOD systems, or be used...

ARRIS sets DOCSIS 3.0 'migration path'.(services)
February 1, 2006... Taking a step toward the promise of DOCSIS 3.0, ARRIS has integrated its downstream-heavy Keystone D5 DMTS platform with a handful of video server vendors. The D5, a product that supports 48 QAM channels, has been integrated with servers...

WildBlue gets down to business.(upfront: LATEST NEWS AND INSIGHT)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2006... WildBlue Communications said it will leverage its Ka-band satellite broadband platform to enter the enterprise Very Small Aperture Terminal. (VSAT) market. Although WildBlue's service got off the ground last June by targeting residential...

Greene: Vongo offers cable 'great opportunities'.(Starz Entertainment Group)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2006... If you think the new Vongo offering from Starz Entertainment Group (SEG) is an "over-the-top" service designed to redirect revenues traditionally tagged for broadband network operators, think again, says company SVP, Advanced Services Bob...

ADB buys OCAP specialist Vidiom.(upfront: LATEST NEWS AND INSIGHT)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2006... ADB Group all but cemented a top position in the OpenCable Application Platform (OCAP) arena after signing a deal to acquire Broomfield, Colo.-based Vidiom Systems. ADB Group is not new to the sector. Its Osmosys division develops OCAP...

Whaleback tees up IP-PBX.(upfront: LATEST NEWS AND INSIGHT)(Whaleback Systems)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2006... Whaleback Systems has formally introduced a business phone system built from the start to support IP connections. The company's SMB1500 is a PBX platform designed for broadband. In comparison, other circuit-based PBX (private branch...

C-COR sheds DV6000 product line.(telecommunications equipment)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2006... C-COR Inc. has inked a deal in principal to sell its DV6000 product line to Newfound Technology Inc., a hardware supplier based in Massachusetts. Although a final purchase agreement is still in the making, the companies expect to dose the...

Network neutrality? Hush! Is yesterday's Hush-A-Phone today's Slingbox?(memory lane)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2006... It's hard to imagine today, when mobile phone users think little of broadcasting their most sensitive conversations within easy earshot of strangers, that people once jealously guarded their telephone privacy. But there was enough concern about...

Brain power multiplied: multi-room DVRs still face business and technology hurdles.(digital video recorder)
February 1, 2006... The technology that will enable the sharing of content and applications from a central point in the home to multiple devices, most notably the multi-room digital video recorder (DVR), is on the verge of greatness. But before that happens, there...

Onward, DCAS: FCC filing highlights momentum for downloadable conditional access.(downloadable conditional access)(telecommunications regulations)
February 1, 2006... The cable industry's downloadable conditional access (DCAS) effort appeared to take a big leap forward late last year following an important filing to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The DCAS project has been in the making for...

Future encounters of the broadband kind: more storage, bandwidth and (lots more) wireless convergence is on cable's horizon.(wireless services)
February 1, 2006... More than 1,000 engineers descended on Tampa, Fla. last month to witness the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers' annual five-year look at the technical horizon. The sold-out 2006 Conference on Emerging Technologies covered the...

NVR: delivering the goods: quantifying the technical aspects of implementing NVR.(networked video recorders)
February 1, 2006... People who use personal video recorders (PVRs) routinely swear never to go back to the "old way" of viewing television on a fixed, uncontrollable schedule. PVRs allow both recording of programs for later viewing and "trick-play" functionality...

Playing up the 'n-play': customer-centric vs. network-centric thinking will help operators win.(broadcasting services)
February 1, 2006... Cable MSOs and telecom service providers are scrambling to grow revenues and reduce churn by diversifying beyond their core services. However, leading with the conventional "triple play" approach of voice, data and video should be recognized as...

OCAP in view: at CES '06, cable spotlights middleware momentum, while competitors focus on portability, IPTV and HDTV.(OpenCable Application Platform)(Internet Protocol Television)(High definition television)
February 1, 2006... Las Vegas-Cable brought out the big guns last month at the Consumer Electronics Show to demonstrate its present and long-term support for the OpenCable Application Platform (OCAP), a CableLabs-specified middleware stack that aims to give...

Emergency communications?(Ciciora's corner)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2006... I live in the Northeast in an area with Lots of trees, where nearly all of the utilities are up on poles. Every once in awhile, Mother Nature surprises us with what I call "electricity appreciation days." These also present an opportunity to...

Noise canceller.(new products: PRODUCT REVIEWS)
February 1, 2006... EAST SYRACUSE, N.Y.-Communications & Energy Corp. has announced a device [Modal 3903-(Channel#)] which suppresses co-channel and other types of off-air interference at cable TV head-ends. The Model 3903 suppresses interference by phase...

Modulator/demodulator.(new products: PRODUCT REVIEWS)
February 1, 2006... BOXBOROUGH, Mass.-Artel Video Systems has released the DigiLink 1242 dual channel diplexer, a modulator/demodulator which simplifies audio connections to an analog video switch. Housed in a 1 RU chassis, the DigiLink 1242 is a two-channel...

Reference designs for DTVs, set-tops.(new products: PRODUCT REVIEWS)
February 1, 2006... WARREN, N.J.--Anadigics Inc. has unveiled RF front-end reference designs for multi-tuner applications such as televisions, set-top boxes, and digital video recorders (DVRs)/personal video recorders (PVRs). The reference designs use the...

Retrofit amp.(TRANSMISSION)
February 1, 2006... ENGLISHTOWN, N.J. -- Extreme Broadband has introduced its new Infinity Premise Retrofit Amplifier Module (model IPA1001FIC) with cable-less F-Port Interface Connector (FIC) technology. This direct-connect module is designed to eliminate the use...

Washington roundup.(capital currents)(Letter to the Editor)
February 1, 2006... Here are some of the open technology issues that I think will affect the cable industry over the next year. Digital TV transition--Congress adjourned in December 2005 without final action, but by the time you read this, legislation should...

Digital simulcast: unlocking cable's bandwidth needs for the future.
February 1, 2006... Viewed as a long-term method of freeing up precious bandwidth, digital simulcast replicates analog channels in the digital tier. During this transition period, the operator distributes up to 80 channels in analog and digital format. Although it...