The State of DOCSIS 3.0
For about a year now, NCTA has been shining a light on the DOCSIS 3.0 specification. Thanks to channel bonding, cable operators will be able to offer wideband service to consumers, with speeds exceeding 100 Mbps downstream. About a month ago, we noted the first deployment of DOCSIS 3.0 in the U.S.
A new article in CED Magazine (”DOCSIS 3.0 arrives“) takes a look at deployments by Videotron and Comcast.
After a year-long trial, [Canadian operator] Videotron is serving up two tiers of the wideband service with speeds of 30 Mbps and 50 Mbps. The slower “Ultimate Speed” costs $64.95 a month while the faster speed checks in at $79.95 a month.
Currently, Videotron’s Ultimate Speed services are available to 112,000 homes in Quebec, with the goal of offering the service to Videotron’s entire footprint of 933,000 homes by next year.
The article notes that, although Videotron didn’t need to do so, some operators may need to use Switched Digital Bandwidth to free up additional DOCSIS channels.
Comcast also picked a system where it wouldn’t need to clear room for more spectrum when it unveiled its first wideband deployment last month in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area with speeds of 50 Mbps on the downstream and 5 Mbps on the upstream.
The service is available to residential customers for $149.95 a month while small to medium-sized businesses can get the increased speeds for $199.95 a month.
Some operators are apparently planning on deployment in 2009.
Tags: CableLabs, channel bonding, Comcast, DOCSIS 3.0, Videotron, wideband
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May 5th, 2008 at 3:24 pm
So why the very big price differentials?
May 6th, 2008 at 8:27 am
I assume that the wideband service, which provides among other things faster download speeds, allows consumers to take advantage of services which have large file sizes. However, my understanding is that Comcast uses TCP reset packets to delay or stop packet downloads as part of its “network management” practices. So why would I want to spend more for a service that will throttle my bandwidth? I also understand that Comcast claims that this practice is to combat heavy P2P users. In fact it has been reported that some customers have had their service terminated because they have exceeded some unspecified threshold. So again, why do I want to have purchase expense download bandwidth, which would facilitate the use of these P2P services, only to receive a notice to desist. In its marketing messages, I get the impression that Comcast is encouraging the use of its network. But its network management practices send a different message.
On a different point, the US government is very active on promoting broadband – even for first responders. The broadband service is intended to supplant narrowband and wideband in the vernacular of wireless. So the progression is narrowband, wideband and now broadband. I wonder why cable decided to go a different route with their new “wideband” services. Doesn’t this increase the confusion in the marketplace which is expecting broadband solutions?
July 1st, 2008 at 4:45 pm
[...] to many more channels, including high-definition offerings. Freeing up bandwidth will help with the deployment of DOCSIS 3.0, the ultra fast “wideband” Internet access that will deliver speeds of over 100 Mbps. In [...]
October 26th, 2008 at 7:55 am
[...] I wrote about Brian Roberts’ CES keynote, in which he talked about wideband. In the spring, Comcast deployed DOCSIS 3.0 in the Minneapolis/St. Paul market. This week, Comcast deployed wideband service to residential homes and businesses in parts of New [...]
April 30th, 2009 at 4:55 am
[...] I wrote about Brian Roberts’ CES keynote, in which he talked about wideband. In the spring, Comcast deployed DOCSIS 3.0 in the Minneapolis/St. Paul market. This week, Comcast deployed wideband service to residential homes and businesses in parts of New [...]