Motorola Inc. and Optical Solutions Inc. said they will combine technologies
to create a system for residential fiber-to-the-home services.
Specifically, that system will be based on Motorola's 'Streamaster' set-top
and Optical Solution's 'FiberPath 400' FTTH system.
The FiberPath system -- which can pump data at a clip as high as 100 megabits
per second -- is comprised of a headend bay, a passive optical network and a
patented 'FiberPoint' subscriber-premises node, Optical Solutions said.
A FiberPath-Streamaster infrastructure will usher in digital-quality video,
data, 3-D games, streaming media and on-demand applications and services, the
companies said.
Motorola's Streamaster box is targeted toward telecommunication carriers and
other digital-subscriber-network service providers, and it carries a cost of
between $450 and $500 per unit. Enron Corp. and Blockbuster Inc. deployed the
box for a limited video-on-demand trial involving about 300 homes. Enron and
Blockbuster have since scrapped that partnership.
Although FTTH is gaining some steam in new, or 'greenfield,' areas, incumbent
cable MSOs have maintained that the technology, remains too pricey for them, and
that their existing hybrid fiber-coaxial systems will more than fit their
bandwidth needs for the foreseeable future.
