One of the advantages of the hybrid fiber/coax (HFC) architecture was that, if need be, an HFC operator could always extend fiber closer to subscribers’ homes. With some competitors deploying fiber to the premise, some MSOs do indeed need to extend their fiber plant, and Motorola is set to accommodate with an architectural variation that combines HFC and Passive Optical Network (PON) technology most familiar from telco fiber deployments.

Motorola’s Cable PON is designed to leverage existing HFC plant as an intermediary step toward a full gigabit PON (GPON) fiber to the premises network.

By emulating a traditional coaxial network, Cable PON allows cable providers to deliver deep-fiber services that simply plug directly into their existing cable infrastructures and back-office operations.

Motorola said cable providers can continue to use set-top and DOCSIS equipment located in homes and headends over PON while adding new FTTP connections in proximate green-field locations supporting Ultra-Broadband service delivery into residential and commercial subscriber communities.