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Virgin Media testing DOCSIS 3.0 to new limits with 200Mbps, 3D and 1080p


Forget 101Mbps Internet service or even the 160Mbps available in on J:COM in Japan, Virgin Media is about to put a lucky few of its slick new modems to real work, testing 200Mbps internet, "full HD" broadband content (we take that to mean 1080p) and 3D. All delivered via DOCSIS 3.0, the downside is that at least for the next six months this pilot project will be extended only to about 100 "lead adopters" around Ashford, Kent for testing. We've heard all we need to get packed for a move, how about you?

[Via Hexus]

Cablevision and Charter gear up for DOCSIS 3.0 rollouts


Comcast nabbed the first US DOCSIS 3.0 deployment award by pushing the technology out to select Minnesota residents in April, but both Charter and Cablevision are making sure to not fall too far behind. During its most recent quarter earnings call, Cablevision COO Tom Rutledge noted that DOCSIS 3.0 would be "operational this year," with around 20% of its footprint going live in 2008 and 100% to be covered by mid-2010. Charter is also poised to introduce the lightning fast broadband capabilities to its loyal customers, with CEO Neil Smit affirming that it would be launched in at least some markets "later in the year." We'd like to think this means we can all look forward to 100Mbit/sec cable internet in the not-too-distant future, but who knows how long it'll take those other MSO's to join the bandwagon.

[VIA DSLReports]

Read - Cablevision DOCSIS 3.0 rollout
Read - Charter DOCSIS 3.0 rollout

And we're off: Twin Cities get first DOCSIS 3.0 deployment


Although we just heard that Comcast's DOCSIS 3.0 rollout was on track for 2009, folks in the Twin Cities region now have exclusive bragging rights for an undisclosed window of time. Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota have become the first markets to have access to an all new "extreme" broadband (or wideband, as it were) connection, which promises 50Mbps down / 5Mbps up. As expected, the carrier isn't being modest about the launch, claiming that users can suck down a 4GB HD movie "in about ten minutes," compared to "more than six hours" on a 1.5Mbps DSL connection. The newfound speed won't come cheap -- for residential users, look to lay down $149.95 per month for the privilege. Even if you aren't springing for the good stuff, current customers in the area will have their existing broadband connections hastened gratis, with 6Mbps / 384Kbps users moving up to 1Mbps uploads and 8Mbps / 768Kbps users seeing 2Mbps uploads. Kudos, Twin Cities -- you just made most of America sick with envy.

[Image courtesy of TheRedWoodMotel]

Cable providers shun HDTV at 2007 Cable Show

The constant struggle for cable companies to crank out more HD channels with an increasingly limited amount of bandwidth rolled right on through the 2007 Cable Show conference in Las Vegas, as a keen attendee noticed a stark absence of HDTV boasting at an expo that would seemingly showcase the format. Mark Kersey noticed that cable providers at the show set up "absolutely zero breakout sessions devoted to cable HD," and moreover, "virtually none of the high-powered panelists in the general sessions even uttered the word HDTV." His perception was that providers seemed "ashamed" of their offerings in comparison to FiOS and satellite, but considering all the flack the dishes have taken for crippling their HD feeds and making grandiose promises that we've yet to see realized, it's not like the other guys are really showing anyone up. Of course, cable has also been scolded a time or two about subpar HD quality, but the reality is that breakthroughs such as OCAP and channel bonding were able to steal the show due to the newsworthy nature of, say, hitting 150Mbps over copper. That said, we're certainly looking forward to the day when cable (or any other medium, actually) goes out of its way to put hordes of HD offerings up on a pedestal.




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