Sterling Cable of San Angelo, Texas is one of the first MSOs to put Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification 2.0 in the air, opting for a fixed wireless transmission scheme instead of standard hybrid fiber/coax.
Sterling, which already operates a multichannel, multipoint distribution system (MMDS) service, will add DOCSIS 2.0 to the mix by tapping licensed 2.5 Gigahertz and 700 Megahertz bands. ARRIS will provide the DOCSIS 2.0 gear, including the C3 cable modem termination system and WM450 modem, while Canadian wireless outfit VCOM Inc. will provide the wireless base station CMTS interfaces.
DOCSIS 2.0 is critical to the deployment of high-speed data service on a MMDS network because it uses a fixed modulation scheme on a sector basis to funnel the higher bandwidth over the greatest distance possible, particularly in rural areas where wireless cell sites are more widely spaced. The system Sterling is installing will have cell coverage radius ranges of 20 miles or more using the 700 MHz frequencies.
“The combined ARRIS-VCOM solution makes a lot of sense for us to deploy in our market,” said Sterling Cable President Bill Jones, on announcing the deployment. “Being a point-to-multipoint operator already, using MMDS frequencies and this 700MHz solution allows us to capture more of the market share.”