Broadband

BCI buying James Cable

April 4, 2013 1:54 pm | by Brian Santo | News | Comments

The company formed by former executives from Bresnan Communications is buying James Cable. The value of the purchase of James Cable was not disclosed, but could be in the neighborhood of $150 million. The move follows BCI’s purchase of the Allegiance cable systems in January.

Broadcom launches first 5G WiFi hotspot

April 3, 2013 1:59 pm | by Andrew Berg, Wireless Week | News | Comments

Broadcom continues its push to support 5G WiFi with the announcement today of a router that supports the technology; it has made the 5G WiFi hotspot available through SK Telecom. Broadcom's 802.11ac Wi-Fi boasts speeds up to three times faster and up to six times more power efficient than previous generations of Wi-Fi.

Cisco intends to buy Ubiquisys

April 3, 2013 1:49 pm | by Ben Munsen, Wireless Week | News | Comments

Ubiquisys provides 3G and LTE small cell technologies to help close the seams in wireless connectivity. The Ubiquisys purchase will mesh with other recent Cisco acquisitions, like Intucell and Broadhop, and further strengthen the company’s mobile strategy.

Verizon denies Vodafone buyout rumors

April 3, 2013 1:45 pm | by Andrew Berg, Wireless Week | News | Comments

A post on the Financial Times' Alaphaville blog yesterday cited "usually reliable people" who said Verizon Communications and AT&T are mulling a breakup bid for Vodafone at a 40 percent premium to Vodafone’s current price, or about $3.65 a share. The supposed bid would value Vodafone at approximately $245 billion.

RGB upgrades video processor

April 3, 2013 1:37 pm | by Brian Santo | Products | Comments

The company’s Video Multiprocessing Gateway (VMG) Gen 2 incorporates a new scalable plug-in module the company says offers more than double the transcoding capacity of its VMG predecessor. The system is particularly suited for delivering TV Everywhere services.

Survey: FTTH leads to huge opex savings

April 3, 2013 1:27 pm | by Brian Santo | News | Comments

Companies deploying fiber to the home are reporting saving an average of 20 percent on opex costs. The survey from the FTTH Council also reveals to 20 percent yearly increase in North American homes connected to all-fiber networks.

Epix now live on the PlayStation3

April 2, 2013 1:42 pm | by Brian Santo | News | Comments

Launched in 2009, Epix has deals with Cox Communications, Charter Communications, Dish Network, Mediacom Communications, the NCTC, Suddenlink Communications and Verizon. The company plans to launch on the PlayStation Vita in a few weeks.

Cogeco Cable launches guide apps

April 2, 2013 1:27 pm | by Brian Santo | News | Comments

Cogeco Cable has launched two new apps, one subscribers can use for content search and discovery and then also to set home equipment to record programs, the other enables remote scheduling of PVRs. Both apps were developed with Rovi Corp.

Comcast has IPv6 running on all Arris-based systems

April 2, 2013 1:23 pm | by Brian Santo | News | Comments

Comcast has enabled IPv6 functionality on its entire Arris C4 CMTS footprint, completing a process begun the middle of last year. The transition to IPv6 is necessitated because the fund of IPv4 addresses is approaching exhaustion. At the same time, NIST has just issued IPv6 transition guidelines.

Report: VZW, AT&T crafting bid to buy Vodafone

April 2, 2013 1:11 pm | by Andrew Berg, Wireless Week | News | Comments

Verizon Communications and AT&T are said to be mulling a breakup bid for Vodafone that would value Vodafone at approximately $245 billion. Verizon entered into a joint venture with Vodafone back in 2000, creating what is now Verizon Wireless. Verizon currently owns 55 percent of the company, while Veodafone holds the remaining 45 percent.

Appeals court: Aereo is legal

April 2, 2013 1:06 pm | by The Associated Press | News | Comments

Aereo, which offers inexpensive live broadcast television feeds to computers, tablets and smartphones, doesn't violate U.S. copyright law, a divided federal appeals court said Monday. The decision was based in part on Cablevision's landmark court case that established the legality of the networked PVR system.

Cisco Systems raises dividend 21 percent

March 29, 2013 12:33 pm | by Associated Press | News | Comments

Cisco Systems Inc. is increasing its dividend 21 percent, its second boost in less than a year. The San Jose, California-based technology giant will pay a 17-cent quarterly dividend on April 24 to shareholders of record April 8. That's up 3 cents from the last quarter.

Media: Sprint, Softbank near U.S. deal to restrict Huawei

March 29, 2013 12:28 pm | by Ben Munson | News | Comments

Sprint and Softbank, the Japanese cellular company that intends to buy 70 percent of the U.S.’s third largest carrier, are expected to allow the U.S. government oversight in its choice of network suppliers. The New York Times reports the deal would enable the government to monitor changes to the combined company’s network and possibly prevent it from using equipment manufactured by Chinese companies, particularly Huawei.

Research: OTN market to hit $13 billion by 2017

March 29, 2013 12:10 pm | by Mike Robuck | News | Comments

The optical transport network (OTN) equipment market is well on its way to topping the $13 billion mark by 2017, according to a recent study by Infonetics Research. Last year the OTN transport and switching equipment market grew 8 percent to $7.3 billion with the bulk of that growth coming from the OTN switching segment, which was up 46 percent in 2012 from 2011.

Lightpath connects Westchester Community College

March 28, 2013 12:48 pm | by Mike Robuck | News | Comments

Lightpath, a division of Cablevision, has helped New York-based Westchester Community College connect its main campus to five remote locations with its fiber network. Using the Lightpath Education Services Suite, the college was also able to enable online registration for students, connect the security staff across locations, offer classes via VOD, and incorporate closed-captioning into lectures.