RCN Corp. said today that it has started testing a DOCSIS 3.0-based data service.
RCN, which competes against Time Warner Cable and Comcast in several major metropolitan areas, said it will be able to offer residential and business downstream speeds of 50 Mbps.
Currently, RCN is testing DOCSIS 3.0 in its Boston and New York City markets, with deployments to follow at unspecified dates.
“Once we have completed our initial testing and trials, we intend to move quickly, similar to our industry-leading efforts to deploy an all-digital video platform, to roll this product upgrade out to our data customers,” said RCN President and CEO Peter Aquino. “We’re taking the time now to test the platform to ensure that when we fully deploy this upgrade, it is done in the most efficient and effective manner for our customers.”
Aquino said that on the small business side, DOCSIS 3.0 will enable customers to leverage 2-megabit and higher symmetrical data services for increased productivity, in-house/on-site hosting and VoIP adoption, all at more attractive prices than the slower T1 service offered by incumbent providers.
Last week, Shaw Communications started offering the fastest North American DOCSIS 3.0 speed, at 100 Mbps, in a limited rollout (story here), while Comcast (story here) and Videotron (story here) plan to continue the 3.0 deployments that started last year.
RCN also issued a press release today that said it’s reaffirming its 2008 financial outlook and has moved its fourth-quarter and full-year 2008 results to Feb. 24.
In a Nov. 4 earnings report, RCN’s 2008 outlook called for revenue in the range of $738 million to $742 million, and capital expenditures of $125 million, among other items.
Lastly, RCN Metro Optical Networks, a division of RCN, said today that it has added a “Managed Router Service” to its Ethernet portfolio. RCN Metro said it has already deployed Managed Router Service to several enterprise customers who require network expertise to support their mission-critical applications.
RCN Metro said the Managed Router Service is a fully managed, end-to-end platform supported by certified engineers and monitored by RCN Metro’s network operations center.