Verizon boosts FiOS home networking speeds up to 175 Mbps
Will deploy next-gen home gateways starting in Q3 08
TeleCommunications OnlineIs the residential broadband market ready for GPON? Verizon thinks it is, or nearly so. In a move towards future-proofing its access networks for 100 Mbps-plus capacity using passive optical network fiber-to-the-home technology that runs at Gigabit speeds in the core, Verizon Communications has announced it will begin to deploy next-gen home gateways, or routers, made by Actiontec Electronics and Westell Technologies in Q3 this year.
Both the MI424-WR from Actiontec and Westell�s UltraLine Series model 9100 were custom-built for Verizon�s FiOS FTTH initiative. These units will drive Verizon�s FiOS capacity from a current high of 75 Mbps to the next projected milestone of 100 Mbps in the home.
The new routers feature greater capacity, supporting 175 Mbps over up to four Wi-Fi simultaneously running networks. QoS/traffic prioritization and security settings can be configured independently for each network, using integrated dual-core processors that can also support multiple applications such as home security, home monitoring and network security.
Verizon envisions customer scenarios that allow each network to run separate security policies, so that one network can be dedicated to �guest and visitors, another with parental controls for young users, one for computers holding secure documents, or one for teleworking only.�
Tushar Saxena, director of home networking technologies for Verizon, also sees wireless connection between digital cameras and your home PC as a possible application. Media sessions can move across home devices, such as between TVs and PCs, media servers, and other consumer digital devices, through emerging DLNA and Universal Plug and Play standards that provide connectivity and service integration. Additional modular devices such as storage servers, printers, and peripherals can be integrated using a USB interface. Verizon support staff can remotely manage all home devices.
The new routers, designed to resist electric power surges and use less energy, are based on an enhanced in-home networking technology called Multimedia over Coax Alliance (MoCA: see MoCA taps for gold in coax) 1.1, which boosts the signal speed over home coaxial cable and eliminates the need for Ethernet links between PCs.
Going with coax, which is already widely installed, makes installation easier for both Verizon and the customer, while supporting up to 15 set-top boxes or other simultaneously running devices (up from seven supported today).
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