Cable Modem
Standards
Almost 3 million cable modems
have been installed in the U.S. and Canada. But all of the hardware and
software supporting those connections isn't interoperable, or able to work
together. If, for example, a cable company uses Motorola network equipment,
only a Motorola modem can be plugged into it.
To try to promote cable modem
rollouts, as well as relieve technological confusion, CableLabs, an industry
trade organisation, drafted a standard for cable modem products in 1996
called DOCSIS, which stands for Data Over Cable Service Interface
Specification. The standard was developed to ensure that cable modem
equipment built by a variety of manufacturers is compatible, as dial-up
modems are.
Today, CableLabs continues to
manage a rigorous testing process for DOCSIS cable modems, stamping the
products that pass the test "CableLabs Certified." Through June, 2001, over
150 DOCSIS modems had been approved. Among the companies marketing DOCSIS
cable modems: 3Com, Cisco Systems, Com21, Motorola, Nortel Networks,
Philips, Thomson, Toshiba, Samsung and Sony. |
