CT's Pipeline articles from March 2003

CT's Pipeline archives from March 2003

Stopping Basic Churn With Upgrades.
March 4, 2003... Last week, Comcast announced its plans to stop basic sub loss. A big part of that strategy involves fixing problems in the former AT&T Broadband properties, which have been bleeding customers. While the old AT&T systems weren't as bad off as...

Tollgrade/Cheetah: What's the Deal?
March 4, 2003... Rumors about Acterna's (www.acterna.com) plan to sell its Cheetah assets had circulated since last summer, and the word at last November's Western Show was that Tollgrade (www.tollgrade.com) would pick it up. Why should this deal, which closed...

DOCSIS Plain and Simple.
March 4, 2003... "DOCSIS Plain and Simple" is a free Webinar that promises to introduce your team to the principles of transporting data over cable, including how DOCSIS impacts data transportation and the differences between 1.0, 1.1 and 2.0. It also will...

Cable Modem Hacking: It Ain't Stamp Collecting.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2003... "TCNiSO is dedicated to hacking cable modems. We find this a fun hobby," says the proprietor of www.cablemodemhack.com. The Web site goes on to detail how users can uncap their cable modems to obtain incredible speeds -- without paying for...

Tune Into Comcast's Brian Roberts at SCTE's Upcoming Expo.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2003... Hear what Brian Roberts, president and CEO of Comcast, has to say on May 12 in his keynote address during SCTE's 20th Anniversary Cable-Tec Expo, May 11-14 in Philadelphia. Under Roberts' leadership, Philadelphia-based Comcast has grown into a...

Death of Cable Telephony Greatly Exaggerated.(Brief Article)
March 11, 2003... "We have more of a vested interest in figuring out IP phone than anyone else in the world," Comcast President Steve Burke said at a Bear Stearns (www.bearsterns.com) conference last week. But don't look for the op to accelerate into the...

Onward and Upward: Standard Software Accelerates VOD.(video on demand)
March 11, 2003... Standards-based software far-removed from cable's classic RF technology are cutting costs and expanding choices for MSOs engaged in rolling out VOD. The open-standards mantra may sound clich, but don't mistake this trend for a fad....

Kagan Summit: ROI on Advanced Services.(Brief Article)
March 11, 2003... How does cable's traditionally measured approach to rolling out new services and ensuring good ROI jibe with the increasingly heated competition from satellite players and the loosening of restrictions on the docket for telephone companies? ...

Attacking Cable Modem Uncapping.(Brief Article)
March 11, 2003... Most broadband engineers involved in high-speed data keep a close eye on www.cablemodemhack.com to keep track of ways that users are uncapping their cable modems to obtain incredible speeds -- without paying for more bandwidth. Two major...

Preview the Expo Exhibit Hall.
March 11, 2003... Tour the Expo Exhibit Hall at SCTE's 20th Anniversary Cable-Tec Expo, May 11-14 in Philadelphia, experience hands-on demonstrations and learn about the current tools and techniques that will save you time and money. Get a preview of the show...

Top MSOs Show Enthusiasm for Future Engineering Projects.(Brief Article)
March 18, 2003... Comcast is more "enthusiastic about the future than at any point in the past," the op's President Steve Burke said at last week's media briefing at CableLabs in Louisville, CO. Comcast's goal is to roll out an initiative or product every 12-18...

Terayon Layoff Scuttlebutt Confirmed.(Brief Article)
March 18, 2003... It wasn't as bad as rumors said it would be, but it still wasn't good news. Last week, Terayon (www.terayon.com) said it would lay off approximately 100 employees, or 20% of its workforce, and the close "certain remote facilities." Conjecture...

Webinar: Cable TV and Data Installation Plain and Simple.(Brief Article)
March 18, 2003... What makes an installation team outstanding? Is it training, tools or simply skill? "Cable TV and Data Installation Plain and Simple" is a free Webinar that presents best-practice solutions for improving the performance of your installation...

The Cable Modem Hacking Arms Race.
March 18, 2003... In last week's issue, Poge Smit, network operations/engineering manager at Cable Co-op/Oberlin.net, said: "With a secure CMTS and proper port/protocol filtering on the consumer side (Ethernet) of the cable modem, a hacker's chance of uncapping...

Gear Up for Learning at Expo.(Cable-Tec Expo)(Brief Article)
March 18, 2003... SCTE's 20th anniversary Cable-Tec Expo, May 11-14 in Philadelphia, features 20 educational workshops focusing on here-and-now engineering issues, such as DOCSIS implementation; networking; OSS; GigE; on-demand solutions; HDTV deployment;...

Why You Should Keep Your Eye on the Home Networking Ball.
March 25, 2003... You've heard the hue and cry for home networking over the last couple of years, and recent news continues to underline the need for broadband engineers to keep it on the top of their to-do lists. At this month's CableLabs...

Time Warner Beefs Up Its SMB Muscle.(small- and medium-business )
March 25, 2003... You've read about this topic many times on these pages, and until the industry commits to a wide-scale, small- and medium-business (SMB) strategy, we'll continue to write about it. That's because SMBs represent one of the most powerful current...

A Peek at the National Show.(Brief Article)
March 25, 2003... While you're gearing up for SCTE's (www.scte.org) Cable-Tec Expo in May in Philly, don't forget about the technical program being planned for NCTA's (www.ncta.com) confab, June 8-11 in Chicago. IP telephony, to home networking, to high...

Modem Uncapping: Easy, or Needle-in-a-Haystack?(broadband engineers involved in high-speed data keep a close eye on www.cablemodemhack.com )(Brief Article)
March 25, 2003... Most broadband engineers involved in high-speed data keep a close eye on www.cablemodemhack.com to keep track of ways that users are uncapping their cable modems to obtain incredible speeds -- without paying for more bandwidth. Two major...

Last Chance to Vote!
March 25, 2003... The deadline to vote in the 2003 SCTE Board of Directors Election is this Friday, March 28, 5 p.m. EST. Take the election packet you received in the mail and vote either online or by paper ballot. Call (800) 542-5040, or e-mail...