Comcast CTO Tony Werner discussed their DOCSIS 3.0 plans with Multichannel News, and commented that it will be a natural evolution of cable modem technology. Werner didn’t offer any specific launch timelines, but did say the so called ‘wideband’ technology is very close to trials at Comcast. DOCSIS 3.0 is the next generation of cable modem which allows the bonding of 6 Mhz channels to create a single virtual broadband pipe of 100 Mbps or more. DOCSIS 3.0 is backwards compatible with earlier DOCSIS versions and also is IPv6 compliant.
Cable technology like DOCSIS 3.0 is raising the competitive bar and allowing cable MSOs to leverage their HFC architecture to compete with FTTH technologies like Verizon FiOS. DSL competitors who do not have very short loop lengths (2,500 feet or less) will find it next to impossible to match the type of broadband experience that DOCSIS 3.0 will provide.
