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To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (2164)	10/16/1998 9:00:00 AM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 12823

Cable modems are spreading faster than predicted, according to report from Oyster Bay, N.Y.<> October 16, 1998 COMMUNICATIONS DAILY via NewsEdge Corporation : Cable modems are spreading faster than predicted, according to report from Oyster Bay, N.Y., research firm Allied Business Intelligence (ABI). Broadband Delivery in the Local Loop said consumers are seeing cable modems "as a strong, viable alternative," based on fact that operators have deployed 210,000 devices and expect to reach 300,000 subscribers by year-end. ABI -- 516-624-3113 or www.alliedworld.com.

To: Stephen B. Temple who wrote (2164)	10/16/1998 9:03:00 AM
From: Stephen B. Temple	Respond to of 12823

I C U, U C Me TV <g> IP Telephony Conf - Cable Industry Eyes Packet Apps October 16, 1998 TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA, Newsbytes via NewsEdge Corporation : The next time you get a new channel on your cable TV service, it might be a telephone. Since AT&T's acquisition of Tele-Communications Inc. (TCI), the spotlight has been brighter on the use of cable-TV networks to provide phone service. The cable television industry sees telephony, using Internet Protocol (IP) or other packet technology, as a market opportunity that would take advantage of its existing networks. "Basically for us it's an incremental business opportunity," said Barbara Adey, vice-president of technology at Vision.com, a research venture backed by eight Canadian cable-TV operators. Speaking at the IP Telephony and Voice/Data Convergence conference, Adey said cable networks are well placed to provide not only residential telephone service, but small office and home office applications such as videoconferencing and shared electronic whiteboards, as well as extending corporate private branch exchange (PBX) functions to the homes of telecommuting employees. Another speaker at the conference, Steve Guiton of the Canadian Cable Television Association (CCTA) said that while the cable-TV industry in Canada is worth about 2.8 billion Canadian dollars, the telecommunications market amounted to some 20 billion Canadian dollars in 1997. The cable industry sees an "enormous opportunity" in this larger market, said Guiton, who is the CCTA's vice-president of telecommunications and multimedia. Before they can exploit the telephony-over-cable market's possibilities, Adey said, cable companies need to increase capacity, provide two-way service on their networks, and improve quality. There are about 7.8 million cable subscribers in Canada now, she said, and as of the beginning of October 4.3 million of those connections have two-way capability. Operators are adding upstream channels as well as working on standards needed to proceed with the new services. CableLabs, a research consortium of North American cable companies, is working on three initiatives in this area. The Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification (DOCSIS) project will provide fundamental standards. PacketCable will address how IP services can be delivered over cable, and the first feature specification is due soon, said Adey. The OpenCable initiative aims to develop specifications for digital set-top boxes that could provide multiple voice lines, always-on Internet access, and other new features. The industry hopes to begin delivering these late next year or in 2000. In Canada, Montreal-based Groupe Videotron has already said it plans to offer the service. Guiton raised the possibility of residential cable subscribers being able to turn on additional voice lines almost instantly through a set-top box, using a menu displayed on the TV screen. "Over the next 10 years," he said, "cable telephony will represent 20 percent of cable industry revenue."