Michael's Insight: Blazing Speeds with DOCSIS 3.0

Most of us take our broadband connection for granted. Thanks to cable modems, turn on your computer and, in a matter of seconds, you're surfing.

A lot of thought went into designing cable modems. The core software that all cable companies use in them is called DOCSIS. In order to keep up with the Internet's breakneck pace of change, CableLabs has developed the next generation of DOCSIS (DOCSIS 3.0) that will enable cable operators to increase speeds dramatically.

DOCSIS 3.0 is being tested right now by Comcast in several markets and they have announced commercial launches in serveral others. The cable industry is getting ready to meet future consumer needs -- customers who are looking to communicate faster than ever over their broadband connection.

Needless to say, we are watching the progress of DOCSIS 3.0 very closely. As more and more large, bandwidth-consuming applications become attractive and available to our customers, we will be ready to offer access to them at blazing speeds. In the not-too-distant future, DOCSIS 3.0 will be at the center of cable's ability to do that and will help keep us in the forefront of speed, technology and service.

DOCSIS 3.0 delivers blazing speeds by bonding several 6 Mhz channels together and devoting them to delivering broadband services. That raises the issue of overall channel capacity which I intend to discuss in a post in the near future.

I have talked extensively about the fact that all ISP's and backbone providers will be even more deeply challenged by how to efficiently maintain their service levels as speeds increase. Rest assured that we at Insight revere the principle that our customers maintain the right to legally go anywhere they want on the Internet. We also deeply desire to maintain the affordability of our service so we don't create a world of Internet haves and have-nots.

Michael's Insight

Blazing Speeds with DOCSIS 3.0

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