CED articles from September 2002

CED archives from September 2002

Real, Microsoft stoke streaming media battle. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... RealNetworks Inc. and Microsoft Corp. upped the streaming media ante recently, with each company introducing a new streaming platform designed to outdo the other. For its part, RealNetworks took the open road with the unveiling of "Helix,"...

Pushing HDTV forward. (in perspective).(digital tuners televison sets)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Dissatisfied with the glacial pace of high-definition TV adoption, FCC Chairman Michael Powell last month put forth a proposal that would require television receiver manufacturers to gradually integrate digital tuners into their televisions,...

AT&T unveils UltraLink tier. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(faster broadband service)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... In the latest move toward cable's data-tiering future, AT&T Broadband recently started to offer a faster broadband tier to residential cable modem customers in several markets. The quicker service, dubbed "UltraLink," will allow the MSO's...

SVOD revenue to surpass `event' VOD by '03. (Upfront: latest news and insight).
September 1, 2002... [GRAPHIC OMITTED]

CableLabs moves on OCAP. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... CableLabs said its second OCAP (Open Cable Application Platform) interoperability event on July 22 was a success, as 15 different vendors joined in with "critical pieces" that make up the specification's puzzle, including hardware platforms,...

Liberate diversifies with Sigma buy. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(Liberate Technologies, Sigma Systems Group)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Middleware vendor Liberate Technologies fattened its technology portfolio with the acquisition of Canada-based OSS company Sigma Systems Group for roughly $62 million in cash. Sigma threw in $20 million to help finance the deal, which could...

SCTE calls for board of directors nominations. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... The Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers (SCTE) said it is accepting candidate nominations for seven seats on its board of directors for the 2003-2005 term, including Region 1 (California, Hawaii and Nevada), Region 2 (Arizona,...

Xbox live launch set for Nov. 15. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(Microsoft Corp. and Sony Corp. launch multiplayer services)(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)
September 1, 2002... Hoping to boost sales in an ultra-competitive gaming console sector, Microsoft Corp. said it will mark the one-year anniversary of the Xbox by launching its much-anticipated broadband-only, multiplayer service. On Nov. 15, Microsoft will...

Collette, Soderquist not away for long. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(Ucentric Systems appoints Michael Collette and Core Networks appoints Craig Soderquist)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Michael Collette and Craig Soderquist-two cable industry veterans-resurfaced over the summer after brief respites, each assuming the top slot at their respective companies. Media software provider Ucentric Systems named Collette, a former...

WSNet to help rural ops market digital. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(digital cable)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Cable sells services, not technology--or at least, that's the message WSNet is trying to deliver to rural cable operators with a new marketing tool crafted to lure digital cable subscribers and keep them away from DBS. WSNet, which helps...

SeaChange launches VOD tour. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(SeaChange International Inc.'s video-on-demand tour)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... In an effort to help the cable industry spread the good word about on-demand services to consumers, SeaChange International Inc. has kicked off its "VOD Experience Tour." Headlining the tour is SeaChange's "All-Television Vehicle, a 41-foot rig...

AT&T's Oxiom and LightWire come under fire. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(C-Cation Inc. v. AT and T Broadband L.L.C.; patent infringement)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... C-Cation, a broadband systems firm based in Delaware, has thrown the legal gauntlet at AT&T Broadband, claiming the MSO infringed on patents for its LightWire and Oxiom HFC architectures for aerial plant. LightWire, jointly developed by...

Charter re-ups with CSG. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(Charter Communications, CSG Systems International)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Despite an ongoing legal tiff with its largest customer, AT&T Broadband, CSG Systems International got some good news over the summer, announcing that Charter Communications had re-upped its customer care and billing deal with the company...

Cable modem data points.(Brief Article)(Illustration)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2002... Cable modem data points Cumulative DOCSIS modem vendor market share, 1998-2001 Motorola (34.9%) Toshiba (13.3%) 3Com (11.6%) Thomson (10.8%) Samsung (6.4%) Com21 (4.7%) Terayon (1.1%)...

HITS enters digital surround with Dolby 5.1. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(Headend in the Sky, Dolby Laboratories' Dolby Digital 5.1 audio)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... AT&T's Headend In The Sky (HITS) is offering Dolby Digital 5.1 audio on "select premium services" following a technology deal with Dolby Laboratories. Dolby 5.1, a multichannel audio scheme, provides five full channels: front left, front right,...

HSA to liquidate. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(High Speed Access Corp.)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Closing the book on a former cable modem service provider, High Speed Access Corp. announced it will dissolve and Liquidate. HSA said it will submit the plan to company shareholders for approval. HSA sold most of its assets to Charter...

Prodan jumps to Broadcom. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(Richard Prodan, Broadcom Corp.)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Dr. Richard Prodan has left Terayon Communication Systems to join Broadcom Corp. as the chipmaker's new vice president and chief scientist, broadband communications. The move could become significant for Broadcom in its develop technology...

FCC mandate aims to jolt DTV to life. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(Federal Communications Commission, digital television)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Hoping to jump-start the digital television era, the Federal Communications Commission voted in mid-August to mandate the installation of off-air DTV tuners in nearly all new television sets by 2007, a decision that rankled the Consumer...

Digital video recorder forecast looks bright. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(Brief Article)(Illustration)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2002... Digital video recorder forecast looks bright 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 Stand-alone 0.6 1.0 1.5 2.1 2.6 3.0 Integrated cable 0.1 0.4 3.3 8.9...

BIAP notches `PiTV' deals. (Upfront: latest news and insight).(personalized information television)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... BIAP Systems, a developer of personalized "artificial intelligence" software for set-tops, said it has secured agreements with USA Media Group, MetroCast Cablevision and the National Cable Television Cooperative, an organization that represents...

Pickers' dilemma: commercial services have been characterized as the low-hanging fruit operators have consistently overlooked. But with little or no extra capital to build out to business, just how much of the business is ripe for the picking?(Cover Story)
September 1, 2002... It's been a common refrain in the cable world for years. The tempting apple that represents the lucrative commercial services marketplace doesn't fall far from a cable operator's residential network tree, common wisdom dictates. Vendors...

eDOCSIS: the final frontier: CableLabs is moving forward on a new initiative that aims to help MSOs and manufacturers grapple with the inevitable--and inescapable--propagation of embedded cable modem technology.(data-over-cable service interface specification)
September 1, 2002... The DOCSIS cable modem invasion is on. Ready or not, the technology is starting to spread itself into a wide range of devices such as multimedia terminal adapters, set-top boxes and residential gateways. Not before too long, it might not be...

Where has all the knowledge gone? (guest commentary).(cable television technicians)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Recently, my boss and I attended a meeting at a major MSO to discuss e-learning products and consulting services (my boss is longtime cable industry veteran Dave Pangrac). We were explaining how software allows technicians to quickly find the...

Building the best gateway: how emerging storage technology trends affect RGs. (Networking: advanced networking technology).(residential gateways)
September 1, 2002... In today's rapidly changing communications industry, the boundaries have begun to blur between PC networks, Internet-based systems, gaming consoles and broadcast television. The evolution of new services, as well as the convergence of some...

Cozying up to consumers: targeted ad technology searches for a viable business model. (Broadband: business and news perspective).(marketing with addressable systems)
September 1, 2002... "Fifty percent of advertising is effective. We just don't know which 50 percent." --Prominent British advertising executive Targeting specific groups of consumers with customized TV commercials that can be altered on the fly and...

Where are you going? (In the loop).(retaining customers)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... I recently listened to the words of the new Dave Matthews Band song. "Where Are You Going?" (Yes, even a 40-something likes to listen to the Dave Matthews Band, although my daughter refuses to acknowledge that fact, because she's afraid she...

Network monitoring integration. (Product Reviews).(AM Communications introduces BridgePort Status Monitoring Headend Controller)(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)
September 1, 2002... QUAKERTOWN, Pa. -- AM Communications Inc. has announced its new BridgePort Status Monitoring Headend Controller. The new multi-protocol status monitoring control unit integrates transponders and equipment from multiple legacy status monitoring...

Cable management. (Product Reviews).(Ortronics introduces Mighty Mo Cable Management Cabinets)(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)
September 1, 2002... NEW LONDON, Conn. -- Ortronics has introduced its Mighty Mo Cable Management Cabinets to the U.S. market. The cabinets offer security, aesthetics and functionality for applications that require a secure telecommunications closet where no...

MPEG-4 platform. (Product Reviews).(from iVAST)(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)
September 1, 2002... SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- iVAST has announced the availability of its MPEG-4 Platform Version 2.0, which offers the latest developments in MPEG-4 software technology. It is based on the ISO's international open standard, with tools for the...

ISM band amplifier module. (Transmission).(introduced by Ophir RF)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2002... LOS ANGELES -- OPHIR RF Inc. has introduced a redesigned 2.4 GHz unlicensed ISM band amplifier module with improved features. Designed primarily for video transmission in the 2.4 GHz unlicensed ISM band, the highly linear amplifier module has...

1310 nm analog lasers. (Product Reviews).(new from Applied Optoelectronics)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2002... SUGAR LAND, Texas -- Applied Optoelectronics Inc. (AOI) has announced the availability of three new analog 1310 nm lasers. The lasers are designed for analog transmission over the 50 MHz to 860 MHz frequency range used to transmit cable...

Web-based monitoring. (Product Reviews).(Product Announcement)
September 1, 2002... FORT COLLINS, Colo. -- RLE Technologies has released its latest product in the Falcon family of monitoring devices--the Falcon Lite. The Falcon Lite is a Web-based monitoring and alarm notification device which monitors environmental conditions...

QAM analyzer. (Product Reviews).(from Promax Electronica S.A.)(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)
September 1, 2002... BARCELONA -- PROMAX Electronica S.A. has introduced the PROMAX-10, a multipurpose cable TV analyzer suited for MSOs and contractors of all sizes. The service and installation tool has the capability to measure MER and BER on QAM digital...

Garbage in, garbage out? (capital currents).(signal quality obligations)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... As an MSO, what obligations do you have to deliver a "perfect" signal to your subscribers? If you receive a "damaged" signal from a broadcaster, can you pass it through to subscribers, or do you have to "repair" it? These questions might...

All aboard! GigE is laying a fast track to become cable's transport of choice for video-on-demand.(Gigabit Ethernet)
September 1, 2002... It's not exactly like the leap from a coal-fed choo-choo to an ultra-sleek bullet train, but Gigabit Ethernet appears to be well on its way to becoming a viable transport alternative for cable operators who are plotting their video-on-demand...

Transmission untethered: free space optics, while on MSO radar screens, hasn't get found an application within their broadband networks. (Free space optics).(multiple service operators)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... It's cool, for sure. The emerging technology of free space optics eschews that pesky transmission medium of actual physical cabling, opting instead for the metaphysical--using infrared laser beams to transmit large amounts of data through the...

Smart communities not necessarily a no brainer; though small in number today, new high-tech, planned neighborhoods could be the wave of the future-if the business case holds water. (Smart communities).
September 1, 2002... Savvy land developers and home builders are partnering with equally progressive triple play service providers in creating technologically connected "smart" communities. As a result, fresh revenue fields courtesy of new homeowners in...

Delay hinders RPR's progress: despite hitting a keg milestone this summer, a final RPR standard is not expected until the fall of 2003. (RPR update).(Resilient Packet Ring)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Thanks to a grueling review process, standard approval for highly touted Resilient Packet Ring (RPR) technology might not happen until about the time Frodo fans hit theaters to see "The Return of the King," the final installment of The Lord of...

Efficiencies: cable's new age network priority. (Test And Management).(cable broadcasting)
September 1, 2002... Wringing every dollar of efficiency from a cable network is the new mantra for cable operators as margins are squeezed, capital expenditures fall and the search for elusive new revenue streams intensifies. Efficiently operating, testing and...

Q & A.(Acterna executives)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2002... Acterna executives fielded a number of questions concerning the growing issue of operational efficiencies in cable networks and their Oct on bottom line revenues, cost reductions and overall network efficiencies. Here are answers to some of the...

Fiber topologies comparison 2002-2003.
September 1, 2002... ARRIS point-to-multipoint HFC network ARRIS offers a range of fiber optic transmission architectures to meet the demand for reliable, scalable and cost-effective broadcast/narrowcast transport services. ARRIS furnishes solutions for...