CED articles from September 2004

CED archives from September 2004

Virtual reality.(in perspective)
September 1, 2004... For at least the past half-century, science fiction writers, screenwriters and others have toyed with the notion that one day we'd all be able to magically transport ourselves from one location to another via some form of molecular...

MSOs rev up high-octane cable modem tiers.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(Multiple Service Operator)
September 1, 2004... When it comes to cable modem services, many operators will have an easy time finding the subject of their "What I did last summer" essays. The most likely answer: Launching speedier tiers in the wake of continued pricing pressure from DSL RCN...

CableLabs adding UPnP to CableHome spec.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(Universal Plug and Play)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... CableLabs is in the process of melding components of the UPnP spec into its own CableHome platform for home networking devices. UPnP, an acronym for Universal Plug and Play, develops interoperability specs for CE devices and PCs from...

Kim Kelly puts Arroyo on the map.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(Arroyo Video Solutions Inc.)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... One of the top women executives in the cable industry has taken the reins of video-on-demand startup Arroyo Video Solutions Inc. as president and CEO. Kim Kelly; who most recently served as president and COO of Insight Communications,...

N2 Broadband integrates into Pioneer Passport.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(N2 broadband Inc.)(Pioneer Digital Technologies Inc.)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Looking to extend its video-on-demand technology reach, N2 broadband Inc. is working to integrate its OpenStream platform into Pioneer digital set-tops that run the Motorola Broadband conditional access scheme. By combining N2's system...

The Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(appoints new chairman)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The Engineering Committee of The Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers has a new chairman: Charlie Kennamer. Kennamer, vice president of digital engineering with Comcast Cable, replaces GCI Cable Chief Technology Officer Dan Pike,...

Rogers, Yahoo! bow broadband content combo.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(Rogers Cable Inc.)(Yahoo! Inc.)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... The long-anticipated broadband content offering from Rogers Cable Inc. and Yahoo! Inc. reached the launch stage in mid-July. The MSO is offering the service, dubbed Rogers Yahoo! Hi-Speed Internet, for no additional charge to its cable...

Utah lights up fiber plans.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(fiber-to-the-premises network)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Two major FTTP projects in Utah reached key milestones this summer. The Utah Telecommunication Open Infrastructure Agency (UTOPIA) got some of its lingering funding questions answered after closing $85 million in revenue bonds for the first...

Knology has partnered with Synacor to create a new high-speed date tier.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(Portelus)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Knology has partnered with Synacor to create a new high-speed date tier that's flush with premium broadband content. Knology will use Synacor's content relationships and "Portelus" platform to offer two premium tiers: My Broadband and My...

North American Cable HDTV deployments.(High definition television)(Illustration)
September 1, 2004... NORTH AMERICAN CABLE HDTV DEPLOYMENTS MSO/market HD set-up supplier(s) ADELPHIA COMMUNICATIONS Albany, N.Y Scientific-Atlanta Bangor, Maine ...

CableLabs selects voice codecs, concerns emerge.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(Cable Television Laboratories Inc.)
September 1, 2004... CableLabs has selected advanced voice codecs from Broadcom Corp. and Global IP Sound for all future PacketCable 1.1- and 1.0-certified and qualified embedded multimedia terminal adapters (eMTAs) and PSTN media gateways. Both vendors have...

Comcast, Time Warner co-op on OCAP.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(OpenCable Application Platform)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Comcast Cable and Time Warner Cable hope to speed their foray into interactive television via a joint venture tasked with creating an OpenCable Application Platform (OCAP) middleware implementation. OCAP is a CableLabs-specified middleware...

USO Videophone's cable connection.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(United Service Organization)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Two cable vets have left the industry they grew up on to head up work at USO Videophone, a project that aims to give troops overseas the ability to communicate with their families via broadband-enabled videophones. Bill Riker, most...

SupportSoft buys Core Networks.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... In a move that keeps consolidation very much alive in the OSS sector, SupportSoft Inc. has inked a deal to acquire the assets of Core Networks for $17 million. SupportSoft expects to close the deal by this September. Canada-based software...

Cable out, DISH in at Colorado muni.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(Colorado shuts down municipality-run cable TV service)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Instead of forging ahead on an expensive upgrade, the town of Center, Colo. has voted to scrap its antiquated, 20-year-old cable plant and instead convert about 600 subs to the EchoStar Communications DBS service. The town, located in...

CableLabs approves more PacketCable gear.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(Cable Television Laboratories Inc.)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... CableLabs capped off certification wave 29 by granting passing PacketCable grades to products tram three vendors: AudioCodes, General Bandwidth, and Motorola Broadband. Motorola won PacketCable 1.0 certification for its SBV5120 embedded...

Kasenna targets VOD content.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Kasenna Inc. is taking aim at a market led by companies such as In Demand and TVN Entertainment with a platform that securely delivers first-run digital movie titles to broadband service providers. Kasenna said its Secure Video Delivery...

Terayon chases down Chase.(Upfront: latest news and insight)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Terayon Communication Systems Inc. didn't let the summer go by without finding a replacement for outgoing CEO Zaki Rakib. Terayon named Jerry Chase to the post in July, though his tenure doesn't go into effect until Sept. 8. Chase, 44,...

Commercial instincts: the cable advertising business has its roots in a San Diego suburb.(memory lane)
September 1, 2004... The first commercial building in the small southern California town of El Cajon was a seven-room hotel built in 1876 by Amaziah Knox, a New Englander who had the smarts to recognize that men working the area's gold mines needed a place to...

Bargain boxes: is the cable industry within reach of the $50, all-digital set-top?(analysis)(Cover Story)
September 1, 2004... Although the cable industry would never want to be associated with the word "cheap," the word certainly applies to the price some operators are willing to pay for bare-bones boxes that will spur the migration to a more bandwidth-efficient,...

The mid-gear swap: MPEG-2 isn't going away anytime soon, giving cable myriad challenges to ponder as it makes plans to insert advanced (and more efficient) codecs.(Moving Picture Experts Group-2)
September 1, 2004... Advanced codecs such as MPEG-4 and Windows Media 9 promise a leaner bandwidth profile and potentially better picture quality, but introducing them onto MPEG 2 dominated networks isn't going to be easy or quick. With a massive base of...

Getting from here to anything, anytime: moving from limited VOD systems to a content-on-demand model.(Networking: advanced networking technology)
September 1, 2004... Video-on-demand (VOD) is cable TV's fastest growing new service category. Aside from providing additional service revenue, VOD is an essential tool in the competition with satellite. It exploits three inherent advantages that modern hybrid...

Gaming for dollars: ops try out titles and services for gamers to drive revenues.(Broadband: business and news perspective)
September 1, 2004... When it comes to broadband gaming, it looks like the cable industry will be playing for keeps. And why not? It's pretty much consensus among industry analysts that the online gaming market will blow up (in a good way) over the coming...

A true LII.(In the loop)(Local Information Infrastructure)
September 1, 2004... With all that's happened in the last decade, the concept of a National Information Infrastructure (NII) as the backbone of the nation's "information super-highway" seems almost old-school. However, even though the original concept for the NII...

Rocket man: with a bird finally in orbit, Tom Moore and WildBlue are preparing to beam broadband to the rural masses.(Broadband: business and news perspective)
September 1, 2004... After a series of fits and starts, WildBlue's plans for a Ka-band-based satellite broadband service literally got off the ground in mid-July following the successful launch of the Anik F2 satellite from a pad in French Guiana. Among the most...

E.A.S. for CableCARDs.(New products: product reviews)( Emergency Alert System product)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Trilithic Inc. has released its latest Emergency Alert System product, the digital E.A.S. solution for CableCARD technology. Guided by the ANSI J-STD-042 under SCTE 18 2002 (EIA/CEA-814) specification (formerly DES 208),...

Removal tools.(New products: product reviews)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... CROMWELL, Conn. -- The Ripley Company has introduced two new Cablematic removal tools, the RT-F716 and RT-BNC. The RT-F716 has a 7/16-inch head for F-connectors, while the RT-BNC has a formed head designed specifically for BNC connectors. The...

Video monitor upgrades.(New products: product reviews)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... BEAVERTON, Ore. -- Tektronix Inc. has announced new firmware upgrades for the WFM700 series of multi format video waveform monitors. All new WFM700 units will ship with this firmware, and customers with previously-purchased WFM700 models can...

Ribbon cable.(Transmission)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. -- Sumitomo Electric Lightwave has introduced a "flexible," gel-free indoor-outdoor ribbon cable. Featuring a cross-ply strength element sheath, the new cable eliminates preferential bend directions, allowing the...

E911 update.(capital currents)
September 1, 2004... From time to time, I've written about the foot-dragging of the cellular phone industry in implementing E911 location technology. While the FCC beat up on the major wireless carriers, who have started to make progress over the last year,...

Letter to our readers.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2004... Dear Reader: This IP Solutions supplement to Broadcasting & Cable, CED and Multichannel News magazines examines the growing influence of Internet Protocol technology on all facets of broadband communications: voice, video and data. ...

VoIP's star rising once again: with operational issues buttoned up, MSOs turn from trials to deployments.(the rise of voip)
September 1, 2004... In the year 2000, VoIP (Voice-over-Internet Protocol) took center stage as one of the cable industry's rising stars, with the promise of a leading role in the triple play of services-video, voice and data. Using IP-enabled technology,...

Exploring the converged network: integration, bandwidth management and support systems are critical pieces.
September 1, 2004... The operational efficiencies, scalability and reduced maintenance costs inherent in an all digital, IP converged network are prompting more broadband service providers to explore the benefits of a fully converged network. The concept of an...

Protecting content in the digital era: conditional access and digital rights management take center stage.
September 1, 2004... Growing concern over content protection and its possible impact on the cable industry and supporting businesses is now a top of mind issue for the triumvirate of content providers, cable operators and device manufacturers. Conditional...

Making the triple play real: IP-enabled networks promise the ultimate package of voice, video and data.(Internet Protocol)
September 1, 2004... Turning the triple play of services--video, voice and data--into a free-flowing revenue stream is the ultimate prize for the cable industry and its collection of supporting business partners, and it's the IP factor that is completing the play....

Heading in the best direction: billions of dollars beckon in SOHO, medium-sized business, enterprise sectors.(Small Office Home Office)
September 1, 2004... IP technology's influence on the cable industry's gradual penetration into the commercial market's "sweet spot"--small-to-mid-size businesses--is growing, and driving more operators into this potentially lucrative space. Nearing no-brainer...

IP marketing enters a brave new world: new marketing mantra: 'speed positively affects your life'.(evolutions of IP marketing)
September 1, 2004... In the brave new world of cable marketing, the emergence of IP technology and the services it enables has helped create a new message for customers: It's not the bundle of speed, price and always-on status, it's how they affect your daily life....